


El Fin Está Aquí

by pique



Series: Zombie AU Series [1]
Category: Football RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Anal Sex, Angst and Feels, Anxiety, Arguing, Blood and Gore, Childishness, Complicated Relationships, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Lovers, First Kiss, Geri/Cris is a past relationship, Guns, Injury, Kidnapping, M/M, More tags to be added, Near Death Experiences, Pining, Resolved Sexual Tension, Reunions, Serious Injuries, Swearing, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Violence, Zombie Apocalypse, more pairings to be added, some relationships are implied
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-06
Updated: 2017-12-26
Packaged: 2018-09-06 22:45:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 22
Words: 61,622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8772409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pique/pseuds/pique
Summary: Geri still can’t believe that the world was able to fall apart so quickly. Then, there are days like today, when it feels as though life has always been like this.





	1. En El Bosque (In the Woods)

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, long time no write. I've wanted to do a zombie apocalypse AU since forever, so finally, here's my attempt at one. I only have a few notes:
> 
> \- This takes place directly after a 2016 El Clasico match played at Camp Nou. The past is sort of canon, with me taking a lot of liberties.
> 
> \- New chapters will be posted ~~every two weeks~~ as often as possible, as I'm super busy right now.
> 
> \- If any of the Spanish is incorrect in my chapter titles and so forth, please let me know.
> 
> I'll add relationships and tags as I feel they are needed. Feedback is always welcome. Thank you so much for reading!

Geri still can’t believe that the world was able to fall apart so quickly. Then, there are days like today, when it feels as though life has always been like this.  
  
“Geri, Geri are you awake?”  
  
He half opens his eyes, feeling the sting as they adjust to the morning sunlight streaming through the curtains.  
  
”Geri!”  
  
His name is called more urgently now, soon enough the noise will wake everybody else in the log cabin.  
  
“For God’s sake go to him,” Leo groans. “Make him shut up.”  
  
Geri sighs and stretches as he hops down from the top bunk. He attempts to steal a glimpse of Leo, only to see him pulling the bed covers over his head, as though he is cementing his wish to remain invisible.  
  
”You could help me,” he says gingerly. “You can’t hide away in here forever you know, Leo.”  
  
It’s not as though he expects a response, but the silence between them seems to linger in the air heavily. After a moment Geri relents, and pats across the hallway, bare feet on the wooden floor, towards Cristiano’s room.  
  
”How are you feeling today?” Geri half smiles, intonating his question enthusiastically. It’s as though he thinks it’s his job to try and keep everybody else’s spirits up.  
  
He sits on the edge of Cristiano’s bed and glances across at him. His dark hair is beginning to outgrow its style, and lighter coloured stubble graces his chin. Butterflies rise in Geri’s stomach, making him forget himself for a moment. Somehow when he sees Cristiano like this, in his natural state, he looks all the more beautiful.  
  
“Where were you?” Cristiano’s lips are pursed together arrogantly, his disapproval palpable. “I had to call for you three times!”  
  
”I’m sorry.” Geri barely hides the hurt from his voice. “I haven’t been sleeping very well lately. It’s Leo… he’s struggling with everything –“  
  
”We’re all struggling,” he interrupts. “It’s the fucking apocalypse Geri!”  
  
”Well, we don’t really know what it is,” he sighs.  
  
”We know enough,” Cristiano states.  
  
Geri doesn’t argue with that. He meets Cristiano’s gaze with his own, sensing the fear eating away inside of him. Each of them carry their constant pain like a burden, the uncertainty of not knowing what has happened to loved ones intensifying with each day that passes. At least Geri’s pain is only mental, whereas Cristiano’s is physical as well.  
  
“I’d like you to try and clean the wound again,” Cristiano asks. “Boil some extra hot water as well, so you can make me some tea.”  
  
”I’m not sure what the others will think,” Geri says hesitantly. “We don’t have much tea left.”  
  
”I don’t care.” Cristiano fails to hide the contempt from his voice. “I need it.”  
  
“Okay,” Geri replies softly. “I’ll see what I can do… since it’s you.”  
  
Sometimes Geri wonders why he does this, why he indulges Cristiano so openly. But he knows he won’t stop, not now, probably not ever. As he makes his way towards the kitchen he hears hushed voices from the third and final bedroom. It’s easy to make out Sergio’s distinct voice. No doubt he’s trying to coerce Gareth and Neymar into another one of his far-fetched plans. Geri shakes his head. He hasn’t got time for this right now.  
  
Once he’s inside the kitchen he grabs the steel kettle, and heads outside to fill it with fresh water from the spring. He vividly remembers so many happy times that he came here with his parents when he was younger. It’s almost as if he knows these woodlands better than he knows the back of his hand. After the events of that night, or _El_ _Clasico_ _Apocalypse_ as Cristiano likes to call it, he didn’t think twice about bringing the group here. He knows he can keep them safe. All of them.  
  
The fire starts to crackle as the flames gather momentum. Geri hangs the kettle above it, taking a seat a safe distance away as he waits for the water to boil. Holding his hands out, he allows the heat to warm them. Winter isn’t far away now, he can feel it in the air.  
  
”Hey,” Neymar calls out quietly from behind him.  
  
“Bom dia.” Geri smiles warmly as Neymar sits down next to him. “How’s it going?”  
  
“I don’t know.” He shrugs, wrapping his arms around his thin frame. “I honestly don’t know.”  
  
Geri nods, pondering for a moment. “I don’t think any of us know.”  
  
Neymar shivers, staring at the ground. It’s as though the heat of the fire is having no effect on him whatsoever. It makes Geri worry even more than he already is doing. Neymar isn’t coping well at all, he hasn’t coped since the moment his iPhone stopped working and life as he knew it came to an end. Geri feels as though his efforts to keep the group together are pointless at times like this.  
  
”How are Sergio and Gareth?”  
  
”Same as ever, I guess.” Neymar looks out towards the trees that surround them. “Sergio wants us to go. He doesn’t think we’re safe here. As for Gareth, I’m not sure that he thinks much of anything at all. At least, he finds it difficult to tell us all what he’s thinking.”  
  
”Bet he wishes he’d paid more attention to those Spanish lessons, huh?” Geri tries to make light of the situation, but inwardly he’s fuming over Sergio’s attitude. He is convinced that Ramos’ hot headedness will put all of them in more danger.  
  
Steam rises from the kettle as the water boils. It instantly breaks Geri’s line of thought.  
  
”I’d better go,” he says to Neymar. “Cris is waiting.”  
  
Neymar nods despondently, and Geri can feel his eyes on him as he walks away.  
  
***

“Do you think it will leave a scar?”  
  
Geri pauses, lifting his head away from his work. “My mother was the doctor, not me.”  
  
“You said was.” Cristiano shuts his eyes, as though he is in great pain. “Please don’t say was.”  
  
Geri’s bright eyes glisten with tears. “I’m sorry.”

“Let’s get back to talking about the wound. Really, how is it?”

“I…”

“What?” Cristiano furrows his brow. “Now you’re really starting to worry me.”

“It’s nothing. Just that I would have expected it to have healed more by now.” Geri acknowledges.

“Oh, I’m not worried about that.” Cristiano waves a hand dismissively. “Just as long as it _is_ actually healing.”

“Well it is, it’s just really slow. It’s weird.” Geri observes.

He looks closely at the gash on Cristiano’s leg. It’s beginning to close up now, but it’s taken several weeks to do so. Geri gently presses the back of his hand onto the skin that surrounds the wound. It isn’t hot. There’s no sign of infection. He takes out a fresh bandage from the first aid box. There aren’t many of those left either. They’re going to have to go and look for more supplies soon.

“I guess it doesn’t matter how slow it is.” Cristiano sighs. “I have all the time in the world.”

“It can feel like that, can’t it?” Geri muses.

“Oh Geri…” Cristiano throws himself back onto the bed in dramatic fashion, staring up at the ceiling. “Don’t you wonder about what happened to the rest of them?”

“Of course I do,” he retorts. “I think about it nearly every second of the day. I should have got more of them out.”

“Some of them must’ve made it,” Cristiano says decisively. “After all, we did.”

“I hope so.” Geri’s reply is so quiet that it’s barely audible.

“It’s just my James…” Cristiano’s voice begins to shake.

Geri turns away, as though he doesn’t want to hear this.

“I can’t bear it.” A sob falls from Cristiano’s lips. “I can’t bear the thought of James turning into one of those… those things!”

Cristiano’s tears begin to fall freely now. Hesitantly, Geri moves towards him. He places his hand over his, rubbing him comfortingly.

“You mustn’t think like that,” Geri whispers. “Just concentrate on getting better again.”

“Oh Geri, what would I do without you?” Cristiano gives him a weak smile. He pauses for thought, then adds “Will there be breakfast soon?”

Geri nods slowly, feeling his heart sink.  
  
***  
  
”Look who’s joining us,” Sergio calls out.

Geri is busying himself by arranging the mushrooms and beans he’s prepared for the meal carefully onto each of the six plates he’s laid out in front of him. When he looks up he’s pleased to see Cristiano taking a seat at the table. It’s the first time all of them have been gathered together since they escaped on that night in the city. Maybe, just maybe, it’s a sign that things are going to get better again. It’s foolish, but he allows himself a glimmer of hope.

“How are you, Cris?” It’s Gareth’s quiet voice asking the question.

“Much better, thanks.” He flashes a winning smile in response. “So, what have I missed?”

An awkward silence hangs.

“Ney, give me a hand with the plates?”

Neymar nods, getting up to help Geri.

“Mushrooms again?” Leo’s face drops.

“I picked them myself,” Geri replies.

The group exchange disapproving looks.

“It’s not like we have much choice over what we can eat, guys.” Geri sighs.

“When we get out of this, I never want to see a fucking mushroom again.” Sergio laughs.

Geri scoops up a mouthful of beans with his fork, eyes flashing darkly as he looks in the direction of Ramos.

“I mean, do you have any better ideas Sergio?” Geri snaps. “I’d love to hear them. I seem to remember that it was me that got us out of Barcelona alive. Not you. Not anyone else.”

“Guys, please let’s not argue,” Neymar whispers.

“I have plenty,” Sergio says, ignoring Neymar’s plea for peace. “We aren’t safe here, Geri. We can’t stay in this little cabin in the middle of the forest indefinitely. It’s suicide.”

“Where would you have us go?” Geri asks. “Back to the city? Because _that’s_ suicide. It’s completely overrun with whatever those things are.”

“Don’t call them things, Geri.” Leo shakes his head. “They used to be people. Maybe they still are. We just don’t understand what’s happened, that’s all. We need to find out what’s going on out there. It’s 2016. They’ve probably already found a cure!”

“You’re seriously agreeing with Sergio?”

“Yeah, I think we should go back to Barcelona,” Leo states. “Check the hospitals, the police stations. Somebody will be able to tell us something.”

“Hang on, I never said we should go back to the city,” Sergio replies. “It’ll be overrun by zombies now.”

Everybody stops eating simultaneously and looks at Ramos.

“Zombies?” Cristiano draws his pronunciation of the word out, as though it feels strange to his lips.

“Well what else would you call them?” Sergio asks. “We saw people getting bitten, and then they came back. Back from the dead.”

Gareth and Neymar let out collective sighs.

“Mark my words.” Sergio continues. “There are no humans left in Barcelona. Whatever that was, that disease if you want to call it that – it was spreading like wildfire.”

 “I need to get to England,” Leo says. “We don’t know that anything has happened in England. It could just be Spain.”

“No.” Sergio shakes his head. “There’s no way you’re doing that.”

“But I need to get to him.” Leo begins to shake and Neymar drapes an arm around his shoulder. “I have to know that Kun is okay.”

“We all have people we need to get to,” Cristiano says sadly. “But I think we’re better off trying to tackle this as a group.”

“Splitting up is only going to put us all in more danger.” Geri agrees.

“We go to my ranch,” Sergio declares. “It’s isolated. I rear my own animals. We wouldn’t be short of meat. I can provide us with real food. It’s got to be better than these fucking mushrooms.”

Geri shoots Sergio a venomous look. “You arrogant bastard.”

“Fuck you.” Sergio spits back.

“You always have to make everything about yourself,” Geri says angrily.

“I don’t know why you two don’t just get it over and sleep with each other already.” Leo snaps, his eyes darting from Geri to Sergio. “We all know you want to.”

“Fuck _you_.” This time Sergio directs the comment towards Leo.

“No. None of this is getting us anywhere,” Cristiano sighs. “If you ask me, we should head for the coast. We could get a boat. I doubt those… ‘beings’ can survive in the water.”

Gareth’s eyes light up at this comment. “Yeah, Cris – don’t you have a private island of your own? We could go there, we’d be safe!”

“Then it’s decided.” Cristiano nods.

“No way. I’m not going.” Leo shakes his head.

“Me neither.” Geri adds.

“I still think my idea is the best one,” Sergio says.

“Neymar, what do you think?” Gareth asks.

“I don’t know.” Neymar puts his head in his hands. “This is all so fucked up.”

“Well we have to do something.” Cristiano adds. “Aren’t we running out of supplies? How much do we have left?”

“Not much,” Geri sighs. “A few more cans of beans and soup. A little tea and coffee. We can’t live on that for long. Then, there’s the fact that we don’t have much in the way of medical supplies left either.”

“We could go and fetch supplies,” Leo says.

“It wouldn’t be hard to top up.” Geri nods. “I still think we’re better off here. It’s a secluded location. We can easily raid the local cafes and other tourist spots that are out here. We’d get everything we needed. If the situation improves then it’s not as though we’re that far away from Barcelona. Someone would find us.”

“No, we’re not staying here.” Sergio replies darkly.

“We should at least get supplies and stay here for a while longer.” Geri argues. “This is our best option.”

“You’re only saying that because you want to be the provider,” Sergio states. “You want to be the one in charge.”

Geri puts his hands up dismissively and starts to talk, but Leo interrupts him.

“We should put this to a vote,” Leo says decisively. Gareth, Cristiano and Neymar nod in agreeance around him.

“Okay.” Leo begins. “Raise your hand if you want to stay here.” He looks around, acknowledging the response. “Or if you want to go to the coast. Or if you want to go back to Barcelona.”  
  
“Or if you want to go to my ranch.” Sergio adds.

“So…” Geri bites on his lower lip, glancing at the other faces at the table. “It’s decided then.”


	2. Grandes Amigos (Great Friends)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't been able to stop writing this all week. Thanks for all of the feedback so far. Chapter 3 will be up next Tuesday!
> 
> Warning that there's blood, gore and violence from this chapter onwards.

"That was hardly a majority vote,” Leo says, folding his arms and huffing.

“Fair is fair,” Geri tries to reply quietly, but he does little to disguise the fact that he’s happy with this victory.

“You’re only saying that because you won.” Leo’s brows begin to furrow.

“What the fuck is this?” Cristiano pipes up. “You two,” he says pointing to Neymar and Gareth. “You’re fucking traitors. What bullshit to side with Geri. ”

“I don’t want to die,” Neymar says dramatically.

“Exactly.” Gareth agrees. “I thought about everything that Geri said, and I’m not saying that we shouldn’t explore our options when the time is right. But for now, I think we should stay here.”

“None of us even know what’s happening out there!” Neymar continues. “Everything could go back to normal soon, couldn’t it? It’ll be like all of this was just a nightmare.”

Sergio’s face is reddening by the second. He loudly thumps both of his fists onto the table, making the other men jump.

“This is the new normal, Neymar!” Sergio snaps. “If you think what we saw the night we left Barcelona was bad, imagine what it’s like now all these weeks on. Things will never go back to the way they were. Instead of us doing something about it, and finding a safe, sustainable place to live, we’re here living out Geri’s fucked up woodland fantasy!”

Sergio gets up and storms off out of the room. Tears begin to form in the corners of Neymar’s eyes. Geri sighs and puts his arm around him, resting his head on his shoulder.

“Don’t worry Ney, he’s always like that,” Geri says softly. “I’m sorry. I really am trying to do my best for everybody.” He glances around the room.

“Okay,” Leo sighs. “When are we going to go for the supplies?”

“Honestly, I think we should go today,” Geri replies. “If we set off in the next hour then we can be back before nightfall.”

For a moment, nobody speaks.

“This is scary,” Gareth says. “I mean I’ve had everything done for me ever since I turned professional. I barely know how to boil a bloody kettle.”

“Well you’re going to have to get used to fending for yourself,” Leo says lowly. “We all are.” He throws a glance in the direction of Cristiano, as if the remark is directed at him.

“Jesus, Leo.” Geri frowns at him. “That was uncalled for. He’s injured.”

“He is?” Leo responds sarcastically. “I hadn’t noticed!”

Cristiano is pouting, his brown eyes fixed on his rival.

“We need to get on with this if we’re doing it today,” Geri states. “Obviously Cris isn’t fit to make the trip, and someone has to stay with him to make sure that he’s safe.”

Leo rolls his eyes at the remark, but nods in acknowledgement.

“And someone needs to speak to Sergio.” Cristiano points out. “He’s got to be on the same page as the rest of us, because we need him.”

“Like hell we do.” Geri disagrees.

“Trust me, we need him.” Cristiano insists. “He’s an outdoors type of guy. He’s probably got better survival instincts than the rest of us put together.”

Geri curses under his breath.

“Can’t you speak to him Cris?” Gareth asks. “He likes you.”

“Fine, fine.” Cristiano waves a hand dramatically. “I’ll work my magic on him.” With a full toothed grin, he gets onto his feet and hobbles out of the room. Geri’s eyes don’t leave him until he’s well out of sight.

“So, who’s staying here with Cris?” Gareth asks.

“I’ll do it,” Neymar replies. His voice is faint and shaky.  
  
Once again, Geri is full of concern. Neymar isn’t coping, and Geri is scared that he’s going to fall apart altogether.

“No.” Leo interrupts. “I’ll stay with him.”

“But I’d rather stay here.” Neymar adds.

“You? Why do you want to stay with him?” Geri asks suspiciously, rubbing his chin with his fingers.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to try and seduce him.” Leo smirks.

“I didn’t suggest that,” Geri says quickly, but he does little to disguise the jealousy in his voice. “It’s just that Ney isn’t ready to go out there yet and – “

“It’ll do him good to go out there.” Leo concludes. “He needs to see what’s going on for himself.”

Uncertainty rears its ugly head for Geri. It’s clear to him that Neymar isn’t comfortable with any of this – perhaps he’ll even be a risk to the rest of the group. Geri’s stomach turns, as though he’s taken a merry-go-round ride. It doesn’t make sense to him that Leo, who has done nothing but complain about Cristiano’s demands ever since they arrived at the cabin, is now volunteering to spend time alone with him. He doesn’t have much time to mull these thoughts over.

“So, are we doing this?” Sergio has returned, and the other men exchange glances.

“Yes.” Leo confirms. “I’ll be staying here with Cris.”

“Right, well you’ll be needing this.” Sergio walks over to the front door, opens it, and returns with a large axe. He hands it to Leo.

“Why are you giving that to him?” Geri asks, putting his hands on his hips in disapproval.

“Why do you think?” Sergio laughs, shaking his head. “Because he needs protection.”

“If anyone turns up while you’re away, you want me to use this?” Leo struggles to hide the surprise from his voice.

“I suppose you could always throw your boots at them instead.” Sergio gives a short, barking laugh.

“Don’t be so fucking disrespectful.” Geri charges towards Sergio, and for a moment he contemplates shoving him in the chest. He’d deserve it.

“Oh, come on, everybody knows he’s got a temper,” Sergio replies.

Leo shoots a look of pure hatred in Sergio’s direction.

“Just make sure you look after Cris.” Sergio demands. “Geri would never forgive you if you let anything happen to him.”

“That’s very sweet of you Geri, but I’m sure Leo and I will be fine.” Cristiano winks, as he limps back towards the table.

Geri swallows hard, feeling his cheeks flush with colour.

“What’s the plan?” Gareth asks, ending the awkward moment. “I mean once we get out there, what are we going to do?”

“We’ll take the bus we used to escape from the city.” Sergio prompts. “We’ll fill it with as many supplies as we can. Ideally, I’d like to get another vehicle, maybe two. We need to be able to get about more easily so that we can make trips outside whenever we need to.”

Geri fiddles awkwardly with the cuffs of his sweater. He avoids looking at Sergio, though he isn’t sure what he’s afraid of betraying to him. It isn’t a bad plan, but he would have liked to have laid the law down to the group himself.

“We make getting food and medical supplies a priority.” Sergio continues with increasing enthusiasm. “Then there’s stuff like blankets and clothes – things that are going to be even harder to find soon.” His voice trails off for a moment. “I hate to bring it up guys, but we also need to get weapons. We’re all going to have to carry something with us and to learn how to use it if we need to.”

Geri’s throat suddenly feels dry. He tries to look at the others, but no one will make eye contact with him.

“What kind of weapons do you mean?” Gareth asks.

Sergio glares sharply at Gareth. “There are miles and miles of horse trails around here. Where there’s livestock, there’s guns. But you know, anything sharp enough to stick into a zombie’s eye or brain.” His voice is steady and his tone has a lightness to it, as though nothing he’s said is unusual at all.

“I’m not a bloody killer.” Gareth stares back at Sergio. “And I don’t agree with people being able to own guns.”

“But it’s kill or be killed,” Sergio replies. “Plenty of people have hunting rifles, it’s perfectly legal, they’re not all lunatics.”

“Nobody cares about gun laws in Brazil.” Neymar adds.

“If the world’s fallen apart, then I’m not sure any of the gun laws are applicable any more anyway.” Geri sighs.

“It’ll just like all the zombie movies I’ve seen, right? You shoot them, you stab them, whatever works.“ Neymar says uncertainly. Geri thinks he looks more childlike than ever.

“Exactly.” Sergio nods. “You’re starring in your own zombie movie now.”

“Right, well, it sounds like you know what you’re doing,” Leo says abruptly.

“It’s time to get moving.” Sergio confirms.

One by one, everybody gets up from the table.

“Wait a minute.” Cristiano chirps up. “Geri, could you try and get some filtered water for me? It’d be much better for my stomach.”

“Yes, of course.” Geri smiles a little, his heart giving a pang in his chest. It’s nice to feel as though he is important to Cristiano.

Leo huffs disapprovingly. The gesture is not lost on Cristiano.

“I’m going to my room,” he announces. “I’m feeling rather tired.”

The remaining five members of the group make their way outside.

“Come on boys, onto the bus.” Sergio waves his hands impatiently.

“One minute,” Geri says, turning to Leo. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay with Cris?” He whispers.

“Of course!” Leo’s voice is raised. “You know, I really don’t get it.”

“Get what?”

“Why you pander to him so much. He’s such a little diva.” Leo snaps.

“He really isn’t,” Geri says softly. “Not when you get to know him.”

“Geri, get your ass here.” Sergio is shouting from the bus door.

“Be safe.” Geri pulls Leo into a tight hug, and for a fleeting moment he draws comfort from feeling the warmth of Leo’s body against his.

Sergio eases himself into the driving seat.

“I’m driving.” Geri asserts, as he gets onto the bus.

“I don’t mind,” Sergio replies. “In fact, I’d quite like to.”

“I know where we’re going, and I know the whole area far better than you do,” Geri says firmly. “So, I’ll drive.”

“Fine.” Sergio pushes past him. “Anything to shut you up.” But he doesn’t take a seat with the others. He lingers directly behind Geri.

Geri’s muscles tense with anger, but he smirks in satisfaction at having got his own way. As he turns the key his ears are filled with the purr of the engine. Its sound is strangely loud after weeks filled with only the gentle noises of the forest. Somehow, it makes him feel more alive again.  
  
***  
  
”It looks… normal.” Neymar is staring out of the window at the glorious, untouched, countryside. “Like, maybe nothing has happened at all.”

“Or maybe things are better now.” Gareth adds.

“No. I wish it was that simple.” Geri is concentrating on the road ahead. He knows this area well, but he isn’t used to driving such a large vehicle. “I was very careful when I brought us here. I knew how remote it was.”

“In other words, nobody fucking comes here.” Sergio laughs. “Not even during the apocalypse!”

“Will you just stop?” Geri stresses the demand, scowling. “It’s beautiful out here. There’s so much more to Catalonia than just Barcelona itself. There are hectares and hectares of countryside, mediaeval villages, horse trails. I love it here, I love the wilderness. I love feeling like none of the bullshit we usually deal with exists any more. You can be totally private here. That’s priceless.”

“God, you do like the sound of your own voice don’t you Geri?” Sergio groans.

“That’s the most hypocritical thing you’ve said yet.” Geri replies.

“It’s like you were just waiting for some hideous disaster so you could take a group of us as prisoners and force us to live up here,” Sergio says darkly. “You’re seriously fucked up.”

“Do you two ever stop?” Gareth sighs.

“I don’t think they do.” Neymar’s reply is strained.

“Look, it’s just up here.” Geri points towards the small, wooden building that they’re approaching.

“This is it, seriously?” Sergio is aghast.

“No, but I thought this place would be good for us to have a trial run.” Geri switches off the engine. “This is just an old tourist centre. Disused for most of the year once the summer season is over. But there’ll probably be some basic medical supplies around.”

“I can’t believe you’re wasting our time with this when we have a limited window before nightfall.” Sergio shakes his head.

“Come on,” Gareth says encouragingly. “We’ll be in and out in two minutes tops.”

“Fine.” Sergio huffs.

The cool fresh air makes Geri’s skin tingle as he steps outside. Sergio storms off ahead, almost running towards the small building.

“What, you’re not going to exercise any caution at all?” Geri asks after him.

“Because there’s not going to be anyone here!”

“You’re not setting a very good example to Neymar and Gareth.” Geri replies.

“Shut up, both of you.” Neymar snaps back, and this is the closest Geri’s seen him to losing his temper since the whole apocalypse began.

“Yeah, we’re not children.” Gareth adds.

Sergio starts a slow, exaggerated walk. “Like this, boys,” he says. “Make sure the zombies don’t hear you coming.”

Geri feels as though all the blood in his veins is beginning to boil. He always needs to make a conscious effort not to lose control around Sergio, but now, it’s taking every bit of energy that he has.

“Oh shit.” Sergio stops suddenly, his voice dropping.

“What is it?” Gareth asks shakily.

A trail of blood leads directly from where Sergio is standing, going all the way towards the door.

“Something bad happened here,” Geri says mechanically, trying to disguise his own fear.

“I don’t want to go in.” Neymar turns to Geri. “Please don’t make me.”

“We’re all going in together.” Sergio sounds defiant.

A small garden area is situated outside the front of the building. A few spoiled home-grown vegetables and flowers grace the bed, and a rake is stuck into the soil. Sergio grabs it, holding it behind his head ready to charge in case anyone should be behind the door. Geri thinks he looks terrifying.

“Open it, Geri,” he demands brusquely. “I’ve got your back.”

Shivers make their way up Geri’s spine, and he breaks out into a nervous sweat. For a moment, he hesitates, not because he’s worried about what is behind the door, but because he’s worried about what Sergio might do to it. He runs his tongue over his lips, and takes a deep breath.

“Okay.” Geri places his hand on the door handle, turning it slowly. As it opens, he senses Gareth and Neymar taking a step backwards behind him.

Inside it’s dusty and claustrophobic.

“God, it fucking stinks in here.” Gareth reaches, putting his hand over his mouth.

“Gareth, be quiet!” Neymar says desperately.

Everyone’s eyes are on the same thing. The trail of blood continues along the floor, stopping at a chair just behind the counter. In it, sits a dead man. There’s a hole in his head, and dried blood caked on his face. The sleeve of his shirt is torn, revealing a large, angry looking bite mark on his arm.

“Oh God,” Geri says in horror.

“Well, he just looks dead to me.” Sergio observes. “He hasn’t changed into one of those things.”

Sergio steps closer. Geri considers pulling him back, but he knows it would be pointless.

“What do you think happened to him?” Neymar’s voice is choked with emotion, and tears begin to fall down his cheeks.

“He shot himself because he got bitten,” Geri whispers, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. “Poor guy.”

“Jackpot!” Sergio exclaims, as he takes a small handgun out of the dead man’s hand. “It’s still got some bullets too.”  
  
Geri can’t believe Sergio’s not more affected by the situation. He’s surprised by how disappointed that makes him.

“Is… is the rest of the place safe?” The sound of Gareth’s voice is muffled.

“It’s just one room. There’s nowhere else to hide,” Sergio replies. Geri watches as he slips the gun into his own pocket. “Here Neymar, you take the rake. You might feel less scared.”

“He got bit.” Gareth clarifies, more to himself than any of the others. “He knew he would change, so he killed himself.”

“I need to pray,” Neymar says quietly, sniffing back tears.

“We can do that later.” Sergio butts in. “We don’t have time now.”

“Let’s just grab what we can,” Geri says, inching away from the dead man.  
  
He looks around the rest of the room. The next thing he sees is a first-aid kit. That fills him with a sense of relief, at least he’ll be able to dress Cristiano’s wound properly when they return.

“Fucking shit,” Sergio declares, as he looks around the room. “There’s nothing here.”

A phone is attached to the wall. Geri lifts the receiver to his ear. “Lifeless.” He confirms, voice full of disappointment.

Gareth cautiously walks past the maps and tourist leaflets, opening the cupboards and drawers behind them one by one. “There’s another first-aid box in here.” He points out. “And look in the far corner, there’s a vending machine.”

“Candy bars.” Neymar’s voice lifts a little, but Geri senses he still deeply traumatised by what the group have seen. “Oh my God… there’s Pepsi!”

“We can’t live on Candy bars and fizzy drinks.” Sergio snaps.

“Sergio, just open it for him.” Geri demands.  
  
“We’re going to have to break into it,” Sergio says, snatching the rake from Neymar. “Stand back.”

With one fell swoop, he smashes the glass.

“Very clever!” Geri claps his hands sarcastically. “Just cut us all to shreds, why don’t you?”

“Grab the stuff so we can get out of here.” Sergio glares back at him.

But Neymar doesn’t need telling, because he’s already carefully removing chocolate bars, bags of crisps and cans of soda from the machine.  
  
***  
  
Nobody says anything as they make their way back to the bus. It’s as though the enormity of what they’ve just seen is hitting them all. Geri can still see the blood when he shuts his eyes, and he can still taste the smell of the place in the back of his throat. Worst of all, he can still see the dead man. He can’t imagine how terrified he must’ve been. Maybe he even knew the zombie that bit him, or rather the person the zombie used to be. This world is not normal. It will never be normal.  
  
” Well that was pointless,” Sergio states, stopping a short way from the bus door.

“Why was it?” Geri asks, glaring intently at him. He can’t believe that Sergio is being so blasé.

Sergio moves tentatively towards him. “You haven’t got a clue what you’re doing Geri, that much is clear to me.”

Gareth and Neymar exchange glances.

“And you have?” He snaps back.

“If there are signs of the outbreak here, so close to where we’re staying, then how long do you think it’s going to be before the zombies are knocking our door down?” Sergio speaks with great confidence.

“You can’t know that,” Geri says dismissively. “Besides, we can make the place safer. We can reinforce it.”

“Maybe the zombies are there now.” Sergio continues. “Munching on Cristiano and Leo.”

“You bastard!” Geri yells, but he feels sick to his stomach.

“I think I should be the leader.” There’s an authority in Sergio’s voice that Geri hasn’t heard before. “I’m staging a coup.”

“I never said I _was_ the fucking leader.” Geri is urging his breathing to calm, but he is incensed.

“When we get back we’ll take another vote,” Sergio says decisively. “We’ve all had enough of your self-centred bullshit.”

“Hey, that’s not true.” Gareth steps up in between them, trying to be the voice of reason. “Geri’s tried his best for us. It’s not his fault we saw what we did in there.”

“That’s what he wants you to think.” Sergio rants. “Gerard Piqué Bernabéu, Prince of Catalonia, what a fucking martyr!”

“What did you say?” Geri feels his whole body begin to shake, his blue eyes are aglow with fury. He can’t believe that Sergio is being so cruel at a time like this.

He is reluctant to let Sergio win this battle, to let him know that he’s got under his skin. But after weeks of trying to be strong, he feels something break deep within him. Geri hasn’t got a shred of patience left.

It’s not that he wants to hurt Sergio, he just wants him to stop speaking.

He runs towards him in a blaze of fury. With a tightly clenched fist, he punches him hard in the face. He doesn’t expect to be the one seeing stars himself, but then again, he’s never felt this angry before. He’s never felt _anything_ like this before. It barely registers when Sergio crumples to the floor in front of him.


	3. Primera Sangre (First Blood)

Geri is awake, but he feels like he is dreaming. The world around him has slowed to a stagger, as though his brain is incapable of processing proper thoughts any more. He is vaguely aware of someone pulling him backwards, and of raised voices in the background.

It’s Gareth who leads him back onto the bus, and who carefully sits him down. The dulcet tone of his voice is comforting, his strange Spanish accent with each word enunciated with a Welsh twang.

But Gareth’s words aren’t nice. He’s livid.

“What on earth did you punch him for?” Gareth yells. “I know as well as anyone that he can be an arsehole, but you’re only making the situation we’re in ten times worse by letting him get to you.”

Geri doesn’t respond. He stares at the knuckles on his right hand, stroking them with his left thumb. They’re reddened, the skin grazed and sore.

“Geri…” Gareth utters his name again. “Geri, are you listening to me?”

“I’m sorry.” He speaks so quietly that Gareth doesn’t hear him.

“What?”

“I said I’m sorry, okay?" Geri sighs heavily. “Listen, can you just give me a minute Gareth?”

His request goes unnoticed, because the door opens, and Neymar and Sergio are back. The large welt under Sergio’s left eye seems to be swelling more by the minute, and it’s a beautiful shade of rich purple. Geri’s surprised that he’s caused so much damage, but Sergio’s jaw is jutting out defiantly, and he still looks just as self-assured as he did before the punch was thrown.

Gareth freezes, his eyes darting from Sergio to Geri. “So, how are you feeling Sergio?”

Neymar shakes his head quickly, silently gesturing for Gareth to keep quiet.

“I’m fine." Sergio grunts, walking to the back of the bus and slumping onto a seat. “It was falling onto the floor that did this, not Geri’s punch.” He points towards his blackened eye. “I was taken by surprise, an unfair advantage. If it’d been a fair fight, Geri would have been annihilated.”

Geri is staring down at the floor, but the slightest of smiles tugs at the corners of his lips. “Right,” he whispers.

“I guess we’d better head back,” Neymar says quietly.

“We can’t.” Geri sighs. “Well, not really.”

“Why not?” Gareth asks.

“Because we haven’t got enough to sustain ourselves on yet.” Geri stands up, walking over to the driver’s seat. “We’ve got to make another stop.”

“And we’ve got to go somewhere more populated.” Sergio chips in.

"It’s going to be dangerous.” Gareth frowns. “What we saw in there was nothing.” His voice begins to break up.

“You’re probably right,” Geri says sadly. “We all going to have to do things we don’t want to do if we’re going to survive this.”

“You’re saying we’re going to have to kill people when we get there.” It’s a statement from Neymar, not a question.

“They’re not people anymore, Ney.” Sergio insists.

“But none of us have killed one of them yet,” Neymar whispers.

“Which is a miracle in itself.” Sergio adds.

“Honestly, we could do this tomorrow. Everyone’s… tired.” Gareth sighs.

“We’d just be putting off the inevitable.” Sergio states.

“And wasting more gas.” Geri starts the engine, his heart sinking as he sees that the fuel gauge is nearly empty. “We can probably make it to the nearest village, but that’s it, tops.”

“But if we’re going to do that, you two need to get along.” Gareth looks from Geri to Sergio. “We need to work together. So, do you have anything you want to say to each other?”

“Geri, your driving leaves a lot to be desired.” Sergio smirks.

“That wasn’t what I meant.” Gareth’s face flushes.

“Ah, you’re clearly referring to the fight. Geri, you punch like a girl.”

“I give up.” Gareth throws his hands into the air.

“Let’s just go. We all want what’s best for the group. That matters more than whatever’s going on between Sergio and me.” Geri acknowledges, but inwardly, he’s still fuming.

Sergio doesn’t appear to be listening. He pulls the gun out of his pocket, checking the bullets again. For the briefest of moments, his eyes meet Geri’s. It makes his blood run cold.  
  
***  
  
Little in the way of conversation takes place during the next forty minutes. To begin with, Geri obsessively checks the fuel gauge every few seconds, expecting the engine to give out at any moment. As the journey progresses, they start to pass abandoned vehicles. Tragic signs of human struggle become more and more commonplace. A child’s toy in the roadway, ripped and bloodstained clothes, battered, empty, suitcases, all of them seemingly forsaken. Geri wonders where the people that owned them are now, and what happened to them? Didn’t anybody try to help them? This stretch of the drive has been the toughest, and Geri’s hope begins to plummet to even lower depths.  
  
With the numerous vehicles scattered everywhere, Geri figures they can get back if they need to. It also means they can siphon some fuel and grab an extra car while they’re at it. At least it’s one thing taken care of.

“Shit.”  
  
It’s Sergio’s voice that breaks the silence. Geri knows exactly what’s caused him to speak up. Just ahead of them, in the middle of the road, a zombie is wandering aimlessly towards the bus.

“Run it over.” Sergio commands.

Geri glances at him from over his shoulder. “I can just drive around it, you know.”

“Geri, look!” Neymar exclaims.

As they approach the outskirts of the village, more zombies emerge. It’s like something out of a horror movie rather than real life.

“Jesus.” Gareth gasps. “How are we going to avoid them all?”

“Don’t worry,” Geri says with more certainty than he feels. “I’ll not stop the bus until I absolutely have to.”

Sergio walks to the front of the vehicle again, standing behind Geri’s seat. Geri can feel his hands either side of his shoulders, it’s like a static charge all around him.

They pass houses with the windows and doors boarded up. ‘Keep out' signs grace many of the buildings. The atmosphere is so tense, it makes Geri feel as though the air is hard to breathe.

“No where’s safe,” he utters. “There’s nowhere left untouched." He swallows hard.

After another couple of minutes, they reach what he assumes to be the centre of the village. A group of zombies are knelt over a corpse, eating at the shreds of it. Bile rises in Geri’s stomach.

“Let’s stop just up here.” Sergio suggests.

 There’s a grocery store with a pharmacy ahead of them.

“Are you sure?” Geri asks. “I bet people have already been in there, the best supplies will have already gone.”

“We have to try,” Gareth says quietly.

“What about…them?” Neymar pipes up.

“They’re eating.” Sergio nods, pointing to the zombies. “They’re distracted, so we can sneak in, get what we want, and then get the hell out again without drawing any extra attention to ourselves.”

Unwillingly, Geri brings the bus to a halt. Neymar and Gareth wear serious expressions.

“We stay close to each other, no matter what.” Sergio instructs.

Geri does a good job with the parking. The door of the bus is almost directly opposite the entrance to the store. They’re mere inches away from it, but somehow it seems so much further. The four men huddle closely together. Geri can feel hot breath on the back of his neck. His heart rattles in his chest. For once, he’s grateful that Sergio is taking the lead. He sees the gun in his hand.

“Don’t use that unless you have to,” Geri whispers. “The noise…"

Sergio nods.

One by one, they make their way to the store’s doorway.

“Help me with this.” Sergio gestures towards it.

Neymar stays at the back with the rake while Sergio keeps hold of the gun. Geri and Gareth push against the sliding door, forcing it open. They all expect something to jump out from behind it, but nothing happens. It’s almost pitch black inside due to the absence of electricity.

“Thank God we’ve got torches.” Gareth gasps, shining the flashlight in his hand around the area.

“Can you see any zombies?” Geri asks Gareth.

“I can’t see any of them, and I can’t hear any of them.” He states.  
  
 “Okay, stay close. Geri and Gareth, you to start filling shopping trolleys with whatever you can. Neymar and I will keep guarding you.”

“Ew, what’s that?” Neymar’s voice is full of disgust.

Geri stares down at his feet, feeling something wet. “It’s water, from all of the freezers defrosting.”

The acrid smell of rotting meat fills the air around them. All the fresh food in the store has long since been ruined, and nobody’s been there to clean it up.

“There’s more left than I thought.” Geri is piling can after can into his trolley. Next, he starts adding jars of jam and peanut butter.

“Grab some boxes of cereal and long life milk. They won’t be out of date yet.” Sergio instructs. Geri finds his constant need to oversee even this task irritating, but he bites his tongue.

“Hey Sergio,” Gareth calls from a little way ahead. “There are tools and stuff up here.”

Sergio marches towards him, leaving Geri with Neymar.

“Are you okay?” Geri whispers tenderly.

“Yeah.” Neymar nods. “Thanks, Geri.”

By the time they’ve walked around the entire store, they’ve filled four shopping trolleys. Sergio proudly pushes one filled with kitchen knives, axes and hammers.

“These will do nicely until we get some more guns.” He grins.

“We got everything we needed, right?” Gareth asks.

“Nearly,” Geri replies. “I’d have liked to have raided the pharmacy, but all of the drugs are stored behind a locked door.”

“It seems a shame not to give it a go before we start back,” Gareth states. “Couldn’t you try to get in there?”

Geri hesitates. This has been a successful raid so far. He doesn’t want to jinx them by pushing his luck.

“Are you two going to be okay loading this lot onto the bus?” Sergio asks Neymar and Gareth.

“I think so.” Neymar nods. “There’s a lot of stuff here. It’s going to take us a while.”

“I have to go back in there with Geri,” he says. “If there’s the slightest sign of trouble you let me know, okay?”

Geri’s heart feels heavy with apprehension, but he’s aware that he needs to do this for the group. If one of them were to fall ill during winter, it would be disastrous.

“Okay,” he says softly. He shoots a look in Sergio’s direction. “Let’s go.”  
  
***  
  
Vulnerability gnaws away at Geri like a dog chewing a bone. He realises this is the first time he’s ever been alone with Sergio, apocalypse or no apocalypse. It fills him with a sense of uneasiness. Unpredictable Sergio. Just when Geri thinks he’s got him figured out, he’ll go and change the rules. The absence of Gareth and Neymar is so palpable, it almost makes him feel like he’s lost a limb. The store seems bigger and far more intimidating than it did just mere minutes ago, when they were all in here together.

“Let’s see if we can break the door down.” Sergio suggests, as they approach it.

It looks as though somebody’s already tried to get into the pharmacy; deep scratches grace the thick metal door that’s in front of them. Geri and Sergio both throw their weight against it, but it doesn’t give.

“This isn’t going to work.” Geri shakes his head, full of disappointment. His mind races as he tries to think of a solution. “We need to unpick the lock. Do you have a credit card, or a paperclip, something like that?”

“Yes, because I came here totally thinking I could pay for our stuff with my MasterCard.” Sergio rolls his eyes.

“That’s not helpful.” Geri wags his finger in Sergio’s face. “Okay, let me look around.”

Geri walks down the nearest aisle, searching the shelves for a suitable tool. There, right in front of him, next to the pens and other stationery, are boxes of paperclips.

“There we go.” Geri smiles, jogging back to Sergio.

“This better work,” he says. “They look pretty flimsy to me.”

“Just let me try.” Geri urges. He unravels a clip, inserting it into the keyhole. “Can you at least shine the torch on the lock so I can see what I’m doing?” He adds.

Sergio complies to the request. “I should punch you in the face while you’re distracted.” He snorts.

Geri holds back a venomous reply.

“You’ve never done this before have you?” Sergio laughs.

“Funnily enough, I’ve never needed to break into anything, no.” Geri is still twisting and turning the paperclip.

Eventually, he feels something click deep within the locking mechanism.

“That’s it, I’ve got it!” He’s surprised at himself.

“It looks like you missed your calling in life, Geri.” Sergio can barely hold back a laugh. “You would have made an excellent criminal.”

“Be careful.” Geri warns. “That was dangerously close to being a compliment.”

“You wish,” Sergio whispers.

Geri pushes the door and it opens. Sergio starts to follow him inside.

“No, you stay out here and watch my back.” Geri requests. “I know what I’m doing.”

“Fine.” Sergio shrugs. “Hurry up.”

Geri finds himself in a far larger lock up than he’d imagined. There are several aisles of shelves, filled with medication. The rest of the area at the back looks to have been used as a storage facility for the main store. Boxes upon boxes of groceries lie there untouched. A rush of adrenaline surges through Geri’s body. It couldn’t be more perfect. If the group were to return tomorrow and take the rest, they’d have all the supplies they’d need for around the next six months.

His mother would know exactly which medications to take, he thinks to himself. He doesn’t have the greatest knowledge of what any of them do.  Rather than being organised by type, such as painkillers or antibiotics, the drugs have been stored in alphabetical order. Taking no chances, he starts to slide handfuls of everything into his shopping bags.

“Are you all right in there?” Sergio asks.

“Yeah.” Geri responds. “There’s a ton more stuff in here, Sergio. Not just medication, but stock for the main store as well.”

“That’s fucking excellent, man.” Geri can sense the triumph in Sergio’s voice.

“That’s twice today you’ve been pleased with me.” Geri laughs.

He hears a grunt in response. It causes him to do a double take. It doesn’t sound like Sergio. In fact, it doesn’t sound human at all. Geri freezes on the spot.

“Sergio, was that you?” Geri’s voice is barely a whisper now.

“Was what me?” Sergio responds dryly.

“Oh God.”  
  
The hairs on the back of Geri’s neck stand up. All his instincts are telling him that something is very, very wrong.

Slowly, he puts his shopping bag down on the floor. He creeps around the tall shelves, peering out from behind them with one eye. In the very furthest corner of the room, almost shrouded in pitch black, is a zombie. It’s taking slow, ragged, breaths. Geri switches the torch off almost as soon as he sees it, but it’s too late. The creature starts to rouse, struggling to its feet.

Clumsily, Geri steps back, only to trip over the bag he’d placed on the floor mere moments before. He reaches out towards one of the shelves to try and stop his fall, but he only succeeds in sending hundreds of bottles of pills cascading towards the floor.  
  
“Geri? Geri, what the fuck is happening in there?” Sergio’s frantic voice sounds from inside the main store.  
  
Geri winces at the noise, knowing it will direct the zombie straight towards them both. He backs himself up towards the door, panic surging through him. The zombie starts to make indescribable noises. It grunts and growls as it staggers towards him. Geri can see that it used to be the pharmacist. The uniform it’s wearing is still intact.

“Geri get out of there!” Sergio screams.

But Geri can’t think rationally, his anxiety is threatening to overwhelm him. When he finally gets to the door, he throws his back against it, closing it.

“What did you do that for?” He can hear Sergio turning the door handle from behind him. “Shit Geri, it’s locked again. Can you open it from where you are?”

Geri feels a fresh wave of panic. Frantically, he turns the handle, but to no avail.

“No.”

“It must lock from inside, a security measure or something.” Sergio sighs, trying to think quickly.

The zombie is moving closer now. All his instincts tell him to stay quiet, but when it raises its head and looks him in the eye, Geri lets out a bloodcurdling scream.  
  
”Geri!” Sergio is shouting now, and it’s the first time Geri’s ever heard him sound scared.

“It’s going to kill me.” Tears begin to fall down Geri’s cheeks. “Sergio, it’s going to kill me.”

“No Geri, just listen to me. Breathe.” Sergio is trying to speak calmly, but Geri can sense the desperation in his voice. “You’re going to kill it.”

“I don’t have a weapon,” he screams back. He can’t believe how stupid he’s been. How could he have forgotten to check out the farthest side of the room before he began scavenging? It’s the only time he’s allowed himself to be complacent, and now he’s going to pay for it.

“Find something.” Sergio stresses. “Anything.”

Geri’s eyes search the area desperately. He can hear the raised voices of Neymar, Gareth, and Sergio in the store behind him. It sounds as though they’re moving things around.

“What on earth are you all doing?” He screams. There is no response.

The zombie is within touching distance now. Geri can see its grey, peeling skin. He hears the rattle of its chest every time it makes an utterance. He smells its putrid breath.

It opens its mouth bearing brown teeth, anticipating its next meal. Geri kicks it hard in the stomach, and it staggers backwards, but it only deters it for a moment.

Geri looks to his left and sees an umbrella hanging from a coat stand. He scrambles, trying to reach out for it. People always tell him that he’s got long limbs, but they’re not long enough for him to be able to get to this one item that could save his life.  
  
Strange noises continue from behind him, and he realises that Sergio, Neymar and Gareth are unreachable now. They’ve given up on him. He thinks of the little cabin in the woods, the only place he’s called home since all of this began. He hopes they make it back there, and that they live to see a time when things go back to normal.

The zombie lets out a triumphant growl as it grabs Geri’s ankle. The touch of its cold, corpse -like fingers makes him recoil in horror. He decides to go out fighting. With his free foot, he kicks at it constantly. He inches towards the coat stand, grasping for the umbrella.

A sharp, ear shattering boom roars around the room. The sound is still resonating in Geri’s head as he watches the zombie’s head explode. Its blood and brain matter splatters all over him. The zombie falls forward, its now truly dead body lying on top of him. He shoves it away in disgust. He can barely get his breath, let alone digest what he’s just witnessed.

Sergio’s upper half is sticking out of an air vent slightly above and to the right of him.

“Hey there,” Sergio whispers through muffled sobs.

Geri is stunned into silence. There are no words to express what he needs to say to Sergio. He doesn’t even know how he’s going to begin to say thank you.

“Not a bad shot for a guy who can only see through one eye, huh?” Sergio half grins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4 will be up a week today :)


	4. Cristiano y Leo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm an awful tease... but this little interlude is an important part of the story. It's also the first time I've written anything exploring Cristiano and Leo's relationship, so it was fun for me to put together.

Leo watches until the bus goes out of sight. He waits until his ear buds can no longer detect the low hum of its engine. Adrenaline courses through his veins. This is it – the one chance he’s been waiting for. He must act quickly.

He hurries back into the cabin. It’s just as he thought. Cristiano is holed up in his room and won’t have a clue what’s happening.

Dashing into the kitchen, Leo is hit with a twinge of guilt. It’s not easy for him to do this to the group. Not only is he running away, but now he’s stealing from them too. He tells himself that this is the only way forward. He takes six cans of food from the cupboard. He rejects the mushrooms – he’ll leave those for Sergio.

Most of the other items in his backpack are his own, apart from a blanket and a torch. The axe stares precariously at him from the front door. Perhaps it would be fairer if he left it behind for Cristiano. Leo will need a weapon once he’s out there though, and the axe is all he has. He sighs, picking it up, feeling the weight of it in his hand. It’s heavy and cumbersome, but beggars can’t be choosers.

Inhaling deeply, he takes one final look around the little cabin that has been his home for the last few weeks. He steps out into the fresh air.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

Leo feels the tight grip of Cristiano’s hand on his shoulder. He freezes on the spot.

“You were watching me.” It’s a statement from Leo, not a question.

“Yes,” Cristiano murmurs.

“Let me go.” Leo tries to push Cristiano’s hand away.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that.” He insists.

“What does it matter to you if I leave?” Leo snaps.

“You wouldn’t last two minutes out there.” The certainty in Cristiano’s tone makes Leo shudder.

“I can’t stay!” Leo raises his voice. He tries to squirm out of Cristiano’s grip.

“You can’t leave,” Cristiano says firmly. “This isn’t up for discussion.”

“You’re injured. You can’t stop me.” Leo spits out the words venomously.

“Yes, I can.” Cristiano corrects him. “And I will, if I have to.”

Leo glares at Cristiano with despair in his eyes. His breathing quickens and a strangled sound escapes from his lips.

“Come on,” Cristiano says softly. “Let’s go back inside.”

Leo falls forward onto his knees, as if in great pain. He makes a conscious effort to blink back tears, but soon deep sobs violently wrench from his stomach. He shakes uncontrollably, feeling his throat tighten.

“Please.” He begs Cristiano. “Please.”

Despite his bad leg, Cristiano hoists Leo up by his arms, leading him back into the cabin. He sits Leo down on the couch in the living room, and joins him.

Leo’s chest is still heaving, his body totally overwhelmed with the intensity of his cries. At one point he stops, sure that he’s going to be sick, but soon the sobs take over again.

“There, there,” Cristiano says calmingly. His hand hovers over Leo, as if he’s scared to break an invisible boundary between them.

They’ve always been cordial with one another. Their relationship is one of respect, but at times it’s been frosty. Leo is his greatest rival, and the only other footballer who’s ever truly got under his skin. Cristiano knows all of Leo’s statistics, which records he holds over him, and which of Leo’s records he wants to take next. But he doesn’t know this version of Leo, and it’s strange to think of being more intimate with him.

However, these aren’t normal circumstances.

“Come here sweetheart.” Cristiano pulls Leo into a tight embrace, letting him sob into his chest. He strokes Leo’s dark hair with his fingers. It’s softer than he’d imagined, the last touches of peroxide blonde are visible only at the very ends.

Leo continues to cry, and he leans against Cristiano, letting the larger man’s body take his weight. Slowly, he reciprocates the hug, his hands sliding around Cristiano’s waist.

“It’s going to be okay.” Cristiano soothes, content to let Leo cry it out. “Whatever it is, whatever made you want to run away, we can sort it out.”

“No.” Leo breathes the word out between sobs. “I need to find him.”

“Kun?” Realisation hits Cristiano.

“Yes.” Leo sniffs, pulling back to look at Cristiano with red, bloodshot eyes.

“Honey, how on earth are you going to do that?” Cristiano stares back at him sadly.

“I don’t know. I hadn’t figured that part out yet.” Leo rubs his face. “But I have to do something. I can’t just sit here, wasting week after week in this cabin.”

“I don’t think he’d want you to look for him.” Cristiano states, not unkindly.

“Why would you say that?”

“Because if he really loves you as much as you love him, then all he’ll want is for you to live. He’ll want you to be safe.” Cristiano muses.

“I wouldn’t call this living.” Leo points to his face. “I can’t get by without him.”

“How long have you been together?” Cristiano asks.

“Since we were teenagers.” Leo replies.

“And you’re… monogamous?” Cristiano inquires, as in disbelief.

“Yes, of course.” Leo nods. “As far as I’m concerned, there’s only ever going to be Kun. No one else comes close. He’s my everything.” Leo’s voice begins to shake again.

“So, you’ve never had Neymar?” He pauses. “Or Luis?”

“Never.” Leo shakes his head defiantly. “Why would you think that? They’re my brothers.”

“I see.” Cristiano can’t wipe the look of surprise off his face.

“I take it that your relationships are very different to mine, then?” Leo’s curiosity is piqued, and it’s a welcome distraction from letting his pain get the better of him.

“My James has thrown quite a spanner into the works.” Cristiano smiles knowingly. “But of course, there have been others, perhaps there still _are_ others.”

Leo sits up, seemingly transfixed.

“I see nothing wrong with having several lovers.” Cristiano continues. “I enjoy sex. Perhaps I’ll have Geri again. I always enjoyed being with him.”

“Okay…” Leo lets out a long, exasperated sigh. “I was meaning to talk to you about that.”

“Geri?”

“Yes,” Leo says firmly. “Surely you can see what you’re doing to him. How he’s been with you since we came here. He has feelings for you, Cristiano. He’s my friend, and I don’t want to see him get hurt.”

“Do you think I’m oblivious?” Cristiano asks. “Geri’s had feelings for me for years now. I was his first boyfriend you know, back when we were both at Manchester United.”

“Yes, I know.” Leo winces. This is a story he’s heard from Geri many, many times.

“I took his virginity,” Cristiano says proudly. “I made him into the lover he is today.”

“Okay.” Leo holds a hand up. “That’s enough. I don’t want to hear any more.”

“Oh, you are a prude.” Cristiano replies.

“I’m not! I just don’t want to hear about yours and Geri’s sex life.” Leo pulls a face.

Cristiano smirks, licking his lips.

“There’s one thing I do want to know though,” Leo says hesitantly. “Supposing you and Geri resume your ‘relationship’, what are you going to do if James turns up?”

“I doubt that happening.” Cristiano interjects sharply. “And I have no intention of letting what could be my last days on this earth go to waste. I’m not a monk, Leo.”

Leo stares down at the floor, and an awkward silence looms.

“Can I ask you something?” Cristiano pipes up.

“Sure.”

“Do you dislike me, Leo?”

Leo is taken aback. It’s the first time he’s ever had such a candid conversation with Cristiano. He didn’t expect it to take this turn.

“Why would you ask that?” Leo frowns. “We don’t really know each other.”

“All these years we’ve been pitted against one another.” Cristiano sighs. “I often wondered what you were thinking. Whether you thought me arrogant when I celebrated my victories over you.”

“Believe it or not, my mind doesn’t really work like that.” Leo replies.

“But surely you’re competitive?” Cristiano pries further. “Don’t you hate to lose as much as I do?”

“Of course. But I see having you as competition as a good thing.”

“Why?”

“Because we push each other.” Leo states. “We make each other better.”

“Sometimes, I think you’ve played a large part in making me as successful as I am.” Cristiano laughs, his eyes glittering as he regards Leo. “But since we’ve wound up here, I’ve become convinced that you hate me.”

“This is a very fucked up situation.” Leo points out. “The way I’ve behaved here has nothing to do with football. I wish football still existed – then I’d have something else to think about.”

“Fancy us ending up together in a post-apocalyptic world.” Cristiano can barely hold back a laugh.

“Even though I’ve been grumpy, I’m honestly glad you’re okay.” Leo acknowledges. “I’m glad you made it.”

“Only just.” Cristiano ponders for a moment, and Leo can see something dark in his eyes. He’s sure Cristiano is holding something back.

“Ah, yes. Your wound must have been pretty serious.” Leo stares down at Cristiano’s leg.

“Not really,” Cristiano says dismissively, hoping Leo will drop the subject.

“How did you do it, again?” Leo shifts himself so that he is facing Cristiano.

Disapproval spreads across his face. “I don’t like thinking about it.” Cristiano’s jaw tenses.

“I only wondered.” Leo replies softly.

“I had to break through a window to escape.” Cristiano’s voice wobbles. “That’s how I hurt my leg. One of those… _things_ was chasing me. After I got out, I hid in a closet. I was bleeding heavily. I called out when I heard Geri’s voice. He found me.”

“Wow.” Leo lowers his eyes.

None of them have really talked about that night. They all saw things they wish they could forget. Leo knows it isn’t his place to delve into Cristiano’s personal suffering, but he can’t dismiss the niggling feeling that Cristiano isn’t telling the truth. Perhaps it’s inconsequential. Yet if Cristiano is holding something serious back from the rest of the group, then Leo wants to know what it is.

“Why don’t you think it’s healed yet?”

“It was pretty deep, I guess.” Cristiano shrugs.

“Geri said it wasn’t infected.”

“Yes, what a miracle.” Cristiano smiles sweetly.

“Well, let’s hope you’re back to full strength soon.” Leo feels stung, but this won’t be his last effort to get to the bottom of things.

Leo gets up to his feet.

“What are you doing?” Cristiano glares at him.

“I’m leaving.”

“We’ve been over this.”

“I haven’t changed my mind,” Leo says defiantly.

“Let’s make a deal.” Cristiano suggests. “Stick it out here for a few more weeks until we know the extent of what’s going on. Then, if we have another vote to decide on what we do next, I’ll vote with you. I’ll vote to go back to Barcelona.”

“Seriously?” Hope glimmers in Leo’s eyes.

“Yes.” He gestures for Leo to sit back down. “Geri’s quick thinking saved us all, but we can’t stay here forever. Eventually we’ll have to retrace our steps and look for clues. I’m sure our people will be looking for us, they’ll miss us just as much as we miss them.”

“You know what keeps me awake at night?” Leo asks him. “It’s the thought that other people have probably been trying to contact us. They’ve probably left messages telling us where they’ve gone. We can’t give up on them Cris, we just can’t.”

“As much as I’d love to be living it up on Jorge Mendes’s private island right now, I agree with you.” Cristiano nods. “We have to check Barcelona first. When the time is right we’ll go.”

“The city was pretty much overrun, even on that first night.” Leo recalls. “I can’t imagine what it’s like now. It’s probably too late.” His voice fades away.

“Come on.” Cristiano pulls Leo into a hug again. “We mustn’t think like that. Whatever state the world is in, we can’t lose hope.”

“I lose a bit of hope every day.”

“Well, that needs to stop. Somehow, Leo Messi, I’m going to help you get through this, whether you like it or not.”

Leo tilts his head to look up at him, feeling overwhelmed by his newfound respect for Cristiano.

“After all, I know how much you’re looking forward to seeing me win the Ballon d’Or again.” Cristiano smirks. “It’s going to happen, apocalypse or no apocalypse.”

Narrowing his eyes, Leo nudges Cristiano in the chest. “We’ll see about that.” He grins.  
  
* * *  
  
Darkness falls, shrouding the Catalonian countryside in its blackness. In the dying embers of the day, Cristiano and Leo become increasingly anxious. Neither have any idea of what’s out there, lurking in the shadows. Lighting more than a couple of candles is strictly out of the question. It would only make the cabin shine like a beacon, no doubt attracting any unsavoury visitors.

“They should be back by now.” Leo’s been staring at his watch for the past half hour. “Geri said they wouldn’t stay out after dark.”

“Try not to worry.” Cristiano’s voice is strained too. He doesn’t want to think about what will happen if the others don’t return.

They sit in silence.

After what seems like an eternity, the low, rumbling noise of motor engines vibrates through the air.

“Is it them?” Cristiano struggles to his feet. “Go and look Leo!”

“I think so. I can see headlights,” he shouts, already having made it to the front door.

Cristiano limps towards him. Both men exchange relieved glances as the bus comes into full view, with Geri and Neymar at its helm. They’re followed closely by a pickup truck, Gareth is driving, and Sergio is in the passenger seat. His face is a mess.

Cristiano and Leo look at each other again. It’s clear that something very bad has happened.

Sergio and Gareth are the first to emerge.  
  
“Jesus Christ, what happened to your face?” Leo is staring open-mouthed at Sergio; whose black eye looks dreadfully swollen and angry.

“Ask Geri,” he says dismissively.  
  
” _What_?” Cristiano mouths to Leo, shock written all over his face.

The two of them turn to look at Geri as he approaches. If Sergio’s appearance has startled them, then Geri’s positively terrifies them. He’s drenched in blood from head to toe.

“And what the fuck happened to you, Geri?” Cristiano stammers.

“Ask Sergio.” He replies tiredly.


	5. Amor Y Odio (Love & Hate)

“Will someone tell us what happened out there?”

Cristiano’s hands are on his hips, his face a mixture of displeasure and panic. Leo is standing at his side, the two of them presenting a united front. Geri thinks they look very much like angry parents, about to ground their kids for coming home late.

He’s not about to give them an explanation. There’s nothing he can say, anyway. He can’t even make sense of the day’s events himself. The only person who can come close to understanding is Sergio. It’s as though the two of them now share an unspeakable, unwanted, bond.

Silence lingers, intensifying the negative atmosphere.

“Geri got trapped in a room with a zombie.” Neymar pipes up, when it’s clear no one else is going to answer. “Sergio shot it.”

Geri feels his muscles tense. Somehow, hearing the tale summed up in two sentences by Neymar trivialises it, and anger jabs at him once more.

“Okay.” Leo sighs, looking even paler than usual. “What about Sergio’s face?”

“Oh…” Neymar shrugs, before biting into a candy bar. “Geri did that.”

Leo and Cristiano both swiftly turn their heads in Geri’s direction. But Geri just slumps his shoulders and stares down at the ground. He’s in no fit state to make conversation.

“I saved his life, even though he punched me.” Sergio chips in groggily. Geri flinches when he hears his tired voice. “And it wasn’t a fair fight – he just lost it, and caught me when I was completely distracted.”

Gareth rolls his eyes. “Yes, we know the result would have been _very_ different if it’d been a fair fight.”

“Jesus fucking Christ.” Cristiano’s eyes widen, his temper fraying. “Didn’t you check that this place was safe before you got yourself trapped in there? We can’t allow this kind of thing to happen again.”

Unease gnaws away at Geri’s insides. How dare Cristiano make such judgements? He’s not the one who almost died today.

“Guys, let’s have this conversation later,” Gareth says amicably. Geri is grateful for his interjection.

“I think I’d like to have it now.” Cristiano insists. “You have no idea how worried we’ve been.”

“How the fuck do you think we felt?” Sergio’s voice is raised. It’s the first time Geri’s ever heard him speak to Cristiano with such blatant contempt. “We were the ones out there, nearly dying just to get supplies so that you can what – spend another month sitting on your ass, recovering from your ‘wound’?”

“Sergio.” Cristiano’s bottom lip begins to tremble. “Who are you to speak to me like this? I’m glad Geri punched you. You’re nothing but a bully!”

Geri’s blood pressure rises again for what feels like the millionth time that day. The others continue to argue but it fades away into the background. In his mind’s eye, all he can see is the image of the zombie coming towards him. It replays in his head again and again. He can’t function properly, not with its blood and guts all over his body.

“Geri?” It’s Leo’s shaky voice that gets through to him, though it’s barely recognisable.

“Don’t talk to me.” Geri staggers forward aimlessly. “Don’t any of you talk to me.”

  
* * *

“I thought I made it clear that I wanted to be alone.”

Geri watches as Sergio throws a heap of logs onto the ground and lights them. Soon, orange flames are reaching up towards the night sky.

Moments later, Sergio is back with a pan of fresh water from the spring.

“Once that’s warm, we can get you cleaned up.” Sergio’s voice is oddly soft and nurturing.

“I might be able to scrub away the mess, but I can’t scrub away the memories.” Geri thinks aloud.

Instantly, he’s annoyed that he’s betrayed himself to Sergio, of all people. He looks up at him with hollow eyes. Sergio moves forward tentatively.

“I thought you’d like this.” He stands in front of Geri, handing him a bottle of shower gel. “At least it’ll make you smell better.”

“Right… thanks.”

Inwardly, Geri’s starting to shake. He swallows hard, trying to maintain his composure. He knew they’d have to speak to each other at some point, of course. He just wasn’t prepared to have _this_ conversation, not right here and right now.

“Geri…” Sergio whispers.

Geri tries to look busy, getting up to check the temperature of the water. It’ll still be a few more minutes before it’s hot enough for him to wash himself with.

“I’m okay.” Geri struggles to keep his voice from trembling. “I just want to get clean.”

“You don’t look okay.” Sergio doesn’t move. “You don’t really look anything like the Geri I know at all.”

Geri thinks back to his former life. He was a prankster, a joker, the guy that you could always rely on to make you laugh.

“I don’t think I even know how to be that person anymore.” Geri exhales slowly.

Sergio says nothing, but Geri’s sure he sees some emotion flash in his face. This isn’t the same man he left the house with this morning. The day’s events have changed him forever, too.

In the light of the fire, Sergio’s swollen eye looks even more terrifying. Geri’s sure he can see the glistening of tears dripping down his cheeks. The sight fills him with sadness.

Despite their differences, they’ve been through so much together. Both before and after the zombies came along.

Geri needs to do something, _anything_ , to distract himself from everything. He turns to the water. Finally, it’s warm enough. He dips a cloth into it, squeezing it out. He mops at his brow, wiping away some of the dried blood.

“No, Geri.” Sergio’s voice is so quiet, Geri hardly believes that it belongs to him. He reaches up and takes the cloth out of Geri’s hand, then uses it to dab at his cheek gently. Their sudden closeness makes Geri tremble.

“I… I need to thank you properly,” Geri mumbles nervously. “I just don’t know how. I wouldn’t have made it out of there but for you, Sergio…”

“Shhh.” He hushes him dismissively. “You don’t need to say anything.”

“Yes, I do.” Geri insists.

“No. We both lost a part of ourselves in that pharmacy,” Sergio says. “But maybe we found something else.”

Geri’s heart races. Being cleaned up by Sergio is incredibly intimate. He wants to reach out and touch him. To trace the shape of his tattoos with his fingertips, to count the freckles on his bronzed shoulders. If he had his way, he’d leave nothing to the imagination.

He wants him utterly and completely.

Perhaps he’s always felt this way, he tells himself. After all, he and Sergio have been at each other’s throats for years now. They’ve always found it impossible to leave each other alone.

Never has Geri so clearly understood the thin line between love and hate.

Sergio peels off Geri’s blood-soaked sweater, throwing it to the ground. For someone who usually spends such a lot of time naked around other men, Geri is suddenly all too aware of his vulnerability.

But he doesn’t tell Sergio to stop.

Heat radiates from Sergio’s fingers, as they linger mere inches away from his skin.

“Touch me.” Geri begs him. “Please.”

He watches with an increasing fascination as Sergio drags his fingers down his chest. His body aches in response, his skin warming as though he has a mild fever.

“Geri.…” Sergio’s voice is deep and dark. His fingers have stopped at the top of Geri’s belt buckle now, so dangerously close to the point of no return.

Geri wonders if they’re really going to do this.

Their eyes meet momentarily; Geri’s glisten with a blue as deep as the ocean, and Sergio’s the richest warm brown, promising forbidden pleasure.

Mere hours ago, Geri never wanted to see Sergio again. He thought of him as a stupid, big lug who was incapable of rousing a reaction such as this from him.

Only now does he realise how blind he’s been to the truth that’s been in front of his eyes all along.

Geri swallows a cry as their lips clash roughly. He lets Sergio’s tongue slip into his mouth, then meets it with his own. The kiss becomes harder, and so does Geri. There’s something very primal about the way Sergio kisses, and it drives Geri wild. It makes him want to be taken.

“What if the others see?” Geri gasps, pulling back.

“From the cabin? No.” Sergio stares back at him like a man possessed. He isn’t about to stop, he needs this too. “But we can move a little further away.”

Geri nods, letting Sergio lead him. He kisses along Geri’s jawline, then licks at his collarbone.

“Sese, please.” Geri groans, kicking off his shoes and then discarding his jeans.

Sergio strips off quickly, standing in front of Geri completely naked. Geri grins, unable to take his eyes off his perfect body.

“Holy shit,” Geri licks his lips approvingly.

“I know, I’m pretty fucking hot.” Sergio smirks back at him confidently. He grabs the shower gel, squeezing a generous amount of it onto his fingers.

It’s not long before they’re up against the tree, Sergio gripping Geri so tightly as he grinds against him, his hot breath in Geri’s ears.

“Geri.” He sighs against his skin. “I’m so glad you’re alive.”

Their needy moans echo out deep into the forest.  


* * *

He wakes to find Sergio’s warm body wrapped around his, the two of them sprawled on the living room couch. Geri closes his eyes and nuzzles his nose against Sergio’s neck, breathing in his scent. It’s like a dream he doesn’t want to wake up from. This is the only thing that’s made sense in his life for such a long time.  
  
“Mmm.” As Sergio begins to stir, he hums contentedly, his fingers running through Geri’s overgrown hair.

Geri licks at his ear lobe, and then kisses his cheek gently. He is about to let their lips meet when he suddenly stops.

“Oh fuck…” He blinks, feeling his stomach twist. “Sese, your eye…”

Sergio reaches up to pat the purple, puffy, skin. “Does it look bad?”

“Terrible.” Geri lowers his head. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to punch you as hard as that.”

“I barely felt a thing.” He smirks.

“Your eye says differently.”

“You’ve got a lot of making up to do, Geri,” Sergio murmurs dreamily. “Perhaps you can start by kissing me.”

“No regrets about last night then?” Geri asks cautiously.

“Only that it didn’t happen sooner,” he replies, stroking Geri’s face with his hand.

Their lips press together, and Geri moans against Sergio’s mouth. He kisses him slowly, meticulously, savouring every moment. His body still tingles. No part of it was left untouched by Sergio last night. Now, he can feel himself growing hard again.

“Jesus Christ!” Leo stands in front of them, a horrified expression on his face. He quickly covers his eyes with his hands. “What the fuck are you two doing?”

Sergio and Geri jump apart, like teenagers who have been caught in a passionate clinch.

“What did it look like we were doing?” Sergio licks his lips, and Geri can’t help but notice how dirty the gesture is.

“I can’t keep up with you, Geri.” Leo sighs, screwing his face up. “I thought you were obsessed with Cristiano.”

“Why would he want a hamburger when he can have steak?” Sergio reaches across and pinches Geri on the butt.

“It’s complicated.” Geri smiles, tilting his head to look at Sergio. “Things with Sergio and I have always been complicated.”

“But now they’re less complicated.” Sergio declares. He turns to face Leo. “No offence hombre, but you look like shit.”

“I have an upset stomach,” Leo replies grumpily.

“Let me guess.” Geri rests his chin on his hand. “You and Neymar ate too much candy.”

“We didn’t eat too much candy.” Leo corrects him. “We ate _all_ the candy.”

“You’re insane.” Sergio laughs.

“Well Cris and Gareth wouldn’t touch it.” Leo points out. “They’re still sticking to their diets.”

“That’s ridiculous.” Geri states.

“Yeah well, I’ve learned my lesson.” Leo winces, rubbing his stomach. He glances around, as if to check no one else is listening. “There’s something I need to talk to you both about.”

“What’s that?” Geri asks.

“Okay.” Leo sits down on the edge of the couch, and Geri senses that there’s an internal argument going on in his head. “Did you see Cristiano hurt himself back when we were in Barcelona?”

“No,” Geri says. “When I found him, he was already injured.”

“Tell me how he did it again?” Leo presses.

“He said something fell on him – wood, maybe, and that he cut himself when he pulled it away.” Geri replies.

“That’s not what he told me.” Leo rubs his hands together. “He said it happened when he tried to get out of a window, and that he was being chased by a zombie at the time.”

“Why would he lie?” Sergio looks unsure of himself.

“Leo, you’ve been obsessed with this from day one.” Geri waves a hand dismissively. “Why are you so fascinated by how he got that wound?”

“Because I knew he wasn’t telling the truth.” Leo nods defiantly. “I knew he was holding something back, and this morning when I woke up, I figured out what it was.”

Geri and Sergio exchange glances.

“Think about it,” Leo speaks gently. “It’s taken weeks to start healing properly, but it didn’t get infected and Cris didn’t get sick with a fever. He did everything he could to stop us finding out how it happened.”

Geri feels a roll of dread in his stomach, he squeezes Sergio’s hand with his own.

“He didn’t get hurt.” Sergio says the words matter-of-factly. “He got bit.”

“Well, that makes no sense.” Geri adds. “If he got bit, then why didn’t he turn?”

“Because he’s immune.” Leo announces proudly. “Cristiano is immune to the zombie virus.”


	6. La Verdad (The Truth)

“When were you going to tell us?” Sergio throws himself against Cristiano’s bedroom door, forcing his way inside.

“Sergio, this is a stupid idea.” Geri’s heart is racing in his chest. He wraps his arms around Sergio’s waist, trying to pull him back.

Red faced and bleary eyed, Sergio isn’t about to be reasoned with.

“Sergio, stop!” If Sergio is angry, then Leo is furious. “I’m never telling you anything in confidence again.”

A shell-shocked Cristiano peers out from his bed covers, blinking slowly.

“Tell us the truth!” Sergio demands, spitting the words out.

Geri tightens his hold on him, but it doesn’t deter him from his objective. Leo stands closely behind them, his brown eyes glistening with fury.

“The truth about what?” Cristiano’s brow furrows. He inches himself backwards, trying to create more space between Sergio and him.

“About this!” Sergio lifts the duvet, revealing Cristiano’s leg.

Gareth marches past the others, putting himself between Cristiano and Sergio.

“What’s got into you?” He says protectively. “Leave Cris alone.”

The noise has woken Neymar too. “Can’t we have one day without an argument?” He asks, rubbing his eyes.

Cristiano takes a deep breath, swallowing hard. “You.” He points to Leo. “I knew you’d worked it out, but I didn’t think you were a traitor.”

“I’m not a traitor, Cris.” Leo rubs at the stubble on his chin, and glares at Cristiano. “I didn’t want to betray you, not after yesterday. But I had to, can’t you see that?”

“No, I don’t. Not at all.” Cristiano shakes the bedding out of Sergio’s hands, covering his leg again. “I’m doing no harm to anyone. I said I’d help you get back to Barcelona. I don’t make promises I can’t keep. Furthermore, I value loyalty above all else. That’s why I trust so few people.”

Geri scowls at Leo. “You two have cooked up a plan?”

“No!” Leo emphasises the denial, rolling his eyes. “Cris, be serious.”

“Will someone tell me what the bloody hell is going on here?” An exasperated Gareth looks from Leo, to Cristiano, to Sergio.

“His injury is a zombie bite.” Sergio declares, his hands on his hips. “He’s been lying about it all along.”

Gareth’s face pales. “Well, he clearly isn’t a zombie…”

“I don’t believe it.” Neymar shakes his head.

“It’s true, I was bitten.” Tears begin to prick at the corners of Cristiano’s eyes.

“You put all of us in danger by coming here.” Sergio snaps. “What if you’d turned on the bus? We’d all be dead by now.”

“I was scared.” Cristiano wipes tears away with his fingertips. “I didn’t want to die alone. When Geri found me, I knew he’d keep me safe.”

Geri swallows hard.

“You took advantage of him.” There’s possessiveness in Sergio’s voice.

“But you didn’t turn. Why?” Neymar asks.

“Those first few days here were some of the longest of my life.” Cristiano recalls, pain etched all over his face. “I kept expecting something to happen, for me to fall ill. I thought perhaps I’d not wake up one morning. But then days became weeks and the wound started to heal. I don’t know why I didn’t fall victim to the infection.”

“This kind of thing isn’t unheard of.” Geri paces as he speaks, as though he’s trying to work something out. “Whenever there’s an outbreak of disease, there are people who don’t succumb to it, even if they’ve been exposed.”

“Geri, you were dressing that wound.” Sergio makes a choking noise. “You could have caught the infection from him.”

“Since when do you care about Geri?” Cristiano laughs, then realisation hits him. “Oh please.” He continues. “You and Geri? That’s pathetic.”

“If Geri wants to be with me, then that’s his choice.” Sergio replies smugly.

“You only wanted him because you knew he wanted me,” Cristiano says crossly.

“You only wanted him because you’re missing your other lapdog, James.” Sergio retorts. “Perhaps you’ll start banging Gareth now you’ve got him protecting you.”

Bale shoots a look in Sergio’s direction, his pale cheeks reddening.

“Just stop!” Neymar shouts.

“So, what does this mean?” Leo interjects. “If he’s immune, can’t he help other people? He might be able to provide a cure.”

“It doesn’t really work like that, Leo.” Geri replies softly. “We don’t know why he didn’t get infected – whether it’s because he has antibodies in his blood, or whether it’s just something in his genetic makeup…”

“I’m not a fucking human guinea pig.” Cristiano interrupts, fear spreading across his face.

“There are probably others.” Geri adds. “People like him who for whatever reason are immune to the virus. They’ll be working on a cure right now, I’m sure of it.”

“Then let’s get the fuck out of here and find them,” Leo shouts. “I want my life back!”

“You aren’t using Cris,” Gareth says defiantly, sitting on the bed in front of Cristiano. “That’s just wrong. I won’t let it happen.”

Cristiano looks up at Gareth gratefully. “Thank you,” he whispers, taking Gareth’s hand in his.

“Bullshit.” Leo spits. “We need to go, and we need to go now. Neymar, don’t you agree with me?”

Everyone tries to speak at once.

“Guys…” Geri holds his hands up in the air, trying to appeal for reason.

It’s almost imperceptible, but his ears pick up an unusual scraping noise coming from outside the building. He freezes on the spot, trying to see if he can hear it again.

He does. This isn’t his imagination playing games with him. His blood runs cold. Cautiously, he walks towards the window, peeling the curtain a little way back.

A zombie scratches at the cabin, its overgrown fingernails leaving deep scrapes in the wood.

“Guys, please shut up.” Geri begs. “We’ve got an unwanted visitor.”

Sergio is the first to react, pulling the gun out of his pocket. Looks of terror spread on everyone else’s faces. Cristiano clings to Gareth, and Neymar grabs hold of Leo.

“The axe.” Geri states. “We need to kill it quietly, remember?”

“It’s near the door.” Leo points.

“Okay…” Sergio starts to walk away.

“It shouldn’t have to be you again,” Geri says sadly.

“Well, someone’s got to do it,” Sergio whispers.

Geri follows him so closely that they’re almost touching. They head into the kitchen, and Sergio grabs the weapon.

“You get the door.” Sergio instructs Geri, raising the axe behind him. “On my signal… now.”

Geri opens the door, his heart racing in his chest. _Please let it be alright_ , he says repeatedly in his head.

The zombie marches forward with purpose. Sergio raises the axe and hits the creature right between the eyes. It isn’t enough. It grunts and growls in pain, its arms scrambling out towards Sergio.

“It’s stuck!” Sergio yells, fighting to pull the embedded axe away.

“Shit!”

This time it’s Geri with his heart in his mouth. The sight of Sergio in peril gives him a physical pain.

Quickly, he scours the kitchen for a weapon. He spots the shiny stainless steel of a carving knife. Perfect.

He sticks it into the zombie’s head, and instantly its lifeless form drops to the floor.

Sergio’s chest is heaving with uneven breaths. Geri reaches out and grabs him, pulling him into a hug. For a moment, Sergio puts all his weight onto him.

“Sese,” he whispers. “Oh, Sese.” He sees the horrified faces of the other four men as he looks over his shoulder.

“I can’t believe one came to our cabin,” Cristiano says, holding back a sob. “We’re such a long way out from the city. I thought we were safe here.”

“Maybe it’s getting worse out there.” Leo concedes.

“It’s okay.” Sergio pulls away from Geri. “We're all safe, we got rid of it.”

“It doesn’t mean the cabin isn’t safe as a whole.” Gareth points out. “It was bound to happen sooner or later. When we went out into the village yesterday, it was clear those things were on the move. They’re hungry, they’re looking for food.”

“I’ll build a fence.” Sergio announces. “I’ll reinforce the place, just as a precaution.”

Leo’s face sinks in disappointment.

“And we all have to carry a weapon, whether we like it or not.” Sergio continues.

“We’ll have to do another run.” Geri sighs. “We’ll get weapons, and whatever you need for the fence.”

“We’re not seriously staying here.” Leo is aghast.

“We have enough food for winter. This place is our best bet,” Geri states.

“I agree.” Sergio nods.

“We all know why you suddenly agree with Geri.” Cristiano snaps.

“Are you saying you’d rather go back and be experimented on?” It’s a low blow from Geri.

“No.” Cristiano has never looked him in this way before, and Geri knows their relationship is now irreparably damaged.

“Staying alive needs to be our priority,” Sergio says firmly. “Now we know Cristiano is immune we should have more hope, not less. There’s a very good chance that things will get better eventually.”

Leo isn’t listening, and he storms off back into his bedroom.

“We just need to stick it out a while longer, guys.” Sergio concludes. “I want us all to make it through this and to come out of it on the other side.”  
  
* * *  
  
”I wonder when he learnt to build fences.” Neymar is looking over at Sergio, who’s been busy at work for the past three days now.

“He’s been around that kind of stuff all his life.” Geri answers quickly. “He isn’t a city kind of guy at all. I’m sure he’d run a ranch full time if he could.”

Sergio stops to wipe the sweat off his brow, then the constant tap, tap, tap of him knocking posts into the ground starts again.

Geri makes a hum of approval, completely enraptured by the sight.

“You’re salivating.” Neymar teases, a boyish grin spreading across his face.

“I am not!” Geri nudges Neymar with his elbow.

“It’s actually good to see you happy,” Neymar says. “It’s good that happiness still exists in a world like this.”

“I’ve never felt this way about anybody before.” Geri confesses. “And I never saw it coming. It just feels so… right, you know? I mean I still have moments where I could strangle him, but I can’t imagine being without him.”

“God, you’ve got it bad.” Neymar smirks.

“I know.” Geri nods. “And for Sergio Ramos of all people.”

The two men take a seat on the grass. Geri feels the knife cover in his pocket as it presses against his thigh. He’s still not used to it being there. Now, thanks to their latest supply run, all of them are carrying knives and guns. Rather than making him feel safer, the weapons only serve as a reminder that they are in constant danger.

“Have you spoken to Leo today?” Geri asks hesitantly.

“He’s not speaking to anyone,” Neymar says sadly. “He’s been holed up in his room ever since we found out about Cris being immune.”

Geri sighs, rubbing his chin. “I’m really worried about him.”

“Me too.” Neymar replies. “I’ve never seen him like this before.”

“All I want to do is to keep everybody safe,” Geri states. “You have to believe me, Ney.”

“I do.” He nods. “I want to go back to Barcelona too, but I’m scared. I think it’ll be overrun.”

“Well, we’re definitely seeing more zombies as time goes on.” Geri points out. “I think it’s because they’re always on the move, looking for food. It’s taken several weeks for them to make it this far out of the city.”

“That’s not good.” Neymar tenses. “If your theory is right, then sooner or later tons of them will arrive here. They seem to prefer moving in groups.”

“Which is why the fence is so important.” Geri acknowledges. “It should keep them out, or at least deter them.”

“I hope so.” Neymar stares down at the floor.

“It will, I know it.” Geri rests a hand on Neymar’s back. “I’m proud of you, you know. You’ve been doing so much better these past few days.”

Neymar looks up at him and smiles. “I’m still scared, Geri. Don’t be fooled. I just want to wake up and for things to be normal again.” His voice begins to shake. “I miss my friends, I miss my iPhone, I miss ordering a pizza after a match… I miss everything about my old life.”

“I miss going out to dinner,” Geri says dreamily. “And playing poker, and video games.”

“And calling people out on Twitter.” Neymar laughs.

“That too.” Geri smirks. “But things will get better one day, I’m sure of it. Life won’t be like this forever.” He feels a slight sting in his heart as he glances over at Sergio. Perhaps not everything needs to go back to the way it was before the outbreak.

“You’re saying we just have to survive.” Neymar runs the idea over in his mind. “Trouble is, it’s getting harder to do that by the day.”

Geri frowns, taking a deep breath. They both know just how true Neymar’s statement is.

“Hey!” Sergio calls out from across the way. “A little help here, please? I’m about to put the last fencing panel in.”

They both jog over to him. The fence is way over eight-foot tall, and although it blocks out some of the light, it’s made their little cabin much more impenetrable.

Neymar pushes against one of the panels that’s already up. It’s rock solid. “Sergio, this is great!” He exclaims.

Together, the three men push the last panel into place.

“There,” Sergio says proudly. “Let’s see those fuckers try to get through that.”

 

* * *

The darkness of the forest is overwhelming, and quite unlike anything Leo has ever seen. It’s pitch black and relentless, so dense that it’s as if light will never follow.

He can’t remember the last time he managed to sleep through the night. In fact, he’s lucky if he sleeps at all.

Leo knows all the usual night noises of the wood – the rustling of the trees and the occasional hoot of an owl. But over the past few days, he’s heard some different noises entirely. The grunts and groans of the undead are startlingly distinct.

He knows they’re coming.

That’s why he doesn’t feel too bad about helping them on their way.

No one notices when he creeps out of the house. Nobody tries to stop him from cutting a hole into the fence. They’re all far too self-absorbed to care about anything he does.

Once he makes it back into the house, he sinks against the door and puts his head into his hands. He is shivering, but not from the cold.

He knows he’s wrong, but he also knows he’s right. He can’t possibly stay here for another day.


	7. El Gran Escape (The Great Escape)

Geri has fallen into a heavy, dreamless, sleep. Sergio’s arm is draped lovingly around his waist. The heat from their bodies radiates, keeping them both warm.

They’re oblivious to what’s going on outside. Oblivious, until it’s too late.

“Wake up, wake up!” Neymar is shaking them both, screaming in panic. The blaring light of his torch shines into their faces, burning their eyes.

“What the fuck is going on?” Geri groans. His body remains half asleep.

“They’ve broken in!” Neymar shouts desperately. “They must’ve got through the fence. There’s tons of them.”

Sergio’s jaw drops in disbelief. He scrambles to his feet.

“How the hell did this happen?” His voice shakes with shock. “I checked the fence before we went to bed. It was secure.”

“Well it’s not secure now…” Cristiano limps into the room, his face pale. Gareth follows closely after him, as though he’s his personal bodyguard.

“Neymar,” Geri says patiently. “I need you to go and get Leo. Can you do that for me?”

Neymar nods, though panic is still written all over his face.

“How many of them are there?” Gareth asks.

Sergio slips his jeans on, and checks the gun. He fumbles around on the ground and finds a torch of his own.

As he slides the curtain back, he’s horrified by what he sees. He can make out at least a dozen pairs of eyes. The herd from the city must have caught up with them.

“How many?” Gareth repeats the question, this time with more urgency.

“A lot.” Sergio replies. “Fuck, I don’t know! It’s too dark. All we have are these torches and they’re not going to give us enough light. I can’t make things out properly.”

“It’s okay, we’ll think of something.” But Geri isn’t sure what they’ll do.

Neymar wanders back in with Leo.

“Are you alright Leo?” Geri asks.

“Yeah, I guess,” He replies quietly.

Geri can’t make his face out in the dark, but he knows Leo well enough to realise that he’s not alright at all.

“He was leaving,” Neymar says bitterly. “He had a suitcase packed and everything.”

Leo stares down at the floor.

“He tried to run away before, when you left him here to watch over me,” Cristiano says through clenched teeth.

“What?” Geri opens his mouth in disbelief. “Leo, why would you do that?”

“We don’t have time for this now.” Sergio spits the words out hastily. “We’ll have to talk about this later.”

There’s a sickening thump as several zombies begin to push against the front door. The wood begins to buckle under the strain, curving in unnatural ways. It could at cave in at any given moment.

“Shit, we need to move,” Gareth gasps.

“There are too many of them.” Cristiano shakes his head in horror as he shines his torch through the window. “We can’t get rid of them all. What are we going to do?”

“We have to go.” Geri concedes, blinking back tears. “We can’t stay. We’ve been overrun.”

“But the house is full of food.” Neymar sighs. “Should we start packing?”

“There’s no time,” Sergio states. “We need to get to the vehicles and then get the hell out of here.”

“There’s still some food on board.” Gareth acknowledges. “We didn’t unload everything.”

“Okay…” Sergio thinks. “Gareth, you and Cris take the pickup truck. Everyone else goes on the bus.”

“How are we even going to get out there?” Cristiano asks. “We’re surrounded.”

“Geri, I’m scared.” Neymar sniffs.

Geri reaches out to touch him in the dark. “It’ll be okay. We can do this,” he says encouragingly.

“Okay, listen up.” Sergio’s voice offers confidence. “This is what we’re going to do. We’re going to stay close to each other, in a line. Everybody takes a weapon and a torch. We’ll go out the back door, we’ll take out whatever is in our path and we’ll head straight to the vehicles without stopping for anything.”

“If anyone gets into trouble, you help them.” Geri demands. “We’re not leaving anybody behind.”

“Where exactly are we going?” It’s the first time Leo has initiated any conversation in days. The sound of his voice takes Geri by surprise.

“We just need to get to safety.” Gareth answers.

“Precisely.” Geri agrees. “We lose the zombies, then we can regroup and decide what we’re doing next.”

“Is everybody happy?” Sergio asks. “You all know what you’re supposed to do?”

There’s a general murmur, but nobody sounds completely convinced. They’re all equally afraid of this going wrong.

“Let’s just go,” Neymar says weakly.

“Geri, get the door.” Sergio instructs.

“I’m getting a terrible sense of déjà vu,” he sighs in reply.

“This… this isn’t safe.” Leo complains.

“Neither was your idea to run away.” Cristiano snaps back.

It’s too late for second thoughts. Geri opens the door and several ravenous zombies are waiting at the other side of it.

Sergio takes two out straight away with the knife.

“You’re getting far too good at this,” Geri calls over to him as he disposes of another.

They step outside into the crisp, wintry, air.

“Stay close!” Sergio emphasises the point. “We haven’t got much further to go.”

As they turn around the corner of the cabin, another herd of zombies are approaching. This group is even bigger than the last.

“Okay, let’s sneak towards the vehicles,” Geri whispers as he crouches stealthily. “We don’t want to attract their – “

Cristiano is too scared to listen. As one of the undead approaches him from the side, he starts shooting wildly.

“Cris, stop!” Gareth yells, sticking a knife into the zombie that’s closest to Cristiano. “What the bloody hell are you doing? They’re attracted to noise.”

Sergio and Geri look at each other in horror as every other zombie within the vicinity of the cabin turns towards them.

“Run! We’ve got to run.” Leo gestures towards the vehicles.

“Gareth, get Cristiano to the pickup truck and I’ll cover you.” Sergio instructs. “Geri, cover Leo and Ney while they get to the bus.”

Gunfire rings out into the night as all six men scramble away, frightened for their lives.

“We’re good.” Gareth starts the pickup truck’s engine, and Cristiano is safely by his side.

“Drive towards the next village. We’ll find you,” Geri shouts.

The bus door is open, and Neymar and Leo are safely aboard.

“Quick, they’re heading towards us,” Neymar yells.

Both Geri and Sergio turn around hastily, and start running.

Sergio stumbles over a rock on the ground, he trips and lands with a thud. A zombie scrambles hungrily towards him.

“No!” Geri exclaims, running back to him. He shoots the creature straight in the head.

With startled, glistening eyes, Sergio looks up at him. There’s blood all over his clothes.

“Come on, Sese.” Geri holds his hand out, pulling Sergio up.

They make it to the bus, seconds before other zombies clamber against the closed door.

“Neymar, drive!” Sergio shouts, painfully aware that they’re about to be completely surrounded.

“But they’re touching the bus.” He complains, as he turns the key in the ignition.

“Put your foot down and go!” Sergio tells him. “It doesn’t matter how many of them you run over, just get us out of here.”

Geri doesn’t think he’s ever been so glad to hear the roar of the engine. He breathes an audible sigh of relief, reaching out to place his hand on Sergio’s. He feels Sergio tremble under his touch.

“I can see why you were so upset about being covered in their blood,” he says softly, the smallest of smiles tugging at the corners of his lips. “It’s gross.”

Geri nods. “Thanks for scaring the shit out of me again,” he whispers.

“Just trying to keep you on your toes.” Sergio jokes darkly.

Leo is staring straight forward, his mouth open and his muscles tense.

“Leo?” Sergio says, turning towards him.

“We should be dead,” he replies quietly. “We should be dead, and it’s because of me.”

“Hey, we got away. It’s alright.” Geri reassures him. “Nothing that happened back there was your fault, Leo.”

Leo turns his head suddenly, but his eyes are roving around. “I shouldn’t have… I can’t do this…” He mutters.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Geri watches him, concern etched on his face. “Is it true what Cris said, that you tried to leave before?”

Leo nods, opening his mouth as though he’s about to speak, but no words come out.

“Why, Leo?” Geri’s voice becomes more strained. “I was trying to keep you safe. I _care_ about you.”

“Please, Geri,” Leo whispers.

“Cut him some slack, Geri,” Sergio says softly. “Can’t you see he’s in shock?”

“Shock?” Geri queries.

“This was his first time, wasn’t it?” Sergio points out. “He hasn’t come on any of the supply runs. He’s always stayed behind. He had no idea how tough things actually are out here.”

Geri nods in understanding. “We’ll look after you Leo, I promise,” he says gently. “And we can talk about everything else when the time is right.”

Leo doesn’t answer. He wraps his arms around himself, rocking back and forth in his seat.

“Uh, do I take a left up here?” Neymar asks, offering a temporary distraction.

“No, turn right.” Sergio tells him. “By the way, you did really well back there, Ney.”

“Thanks.” There’s a faint smile on Neymar’s lips, and he draws himself up to his full height proudly.

“Here we go, just up ahead.” Geri points. “There’s the pickup truck.”

“They’re safe.” Neymar smiles as the bus headlights pick out the tall figures of Gareth and Cristiano, who are standing in the road looking around expectantly. “I can’t believe we all made it out of there alive.”

“Well we did.” Sergio sighs. “Thank god.”

Neymar parks up a few feet behind the other vehicle, opening the door so that the others can join them on the bus.

“Well, that’s an experience I’m not going to be ready to repeat in a hurry.” Cristiano shoves his way past the group, and throws himself onto a seat dramatically.

“Is everybody okay?” Gareth asks timidly.

The sun is rising, and in the dawn light Geri can see dark circles under Gareth’s eyes. The ordeal back at the cabin has left them all exhausted.

“I think so.” Neymar replies, sinking back into the driver’s seat.

“I want to know how the fuck that happened.” Cristiano purses his lips together angrily. “I thought your fence was supposed to be indestructible, Sergio.”

“Evidently it wasn’t,” Gareth sighs.

“I can’t work it out.” Sergio gulps, rubbing his face with his hands. “I checked it right before we went to bed and it was absolutely solid. It provided a complete barrier between us and the outside world. I’m not saying they wouldn’t have ever been able to break into it, but it should have taken them hours to do so. We should have been given adequate warning.”

Geri feels a pang of sadness. He doesn’t like seeing Sergio like this, glum and defeated.

“You must have missed something, it’s as simple as that.” There’s reprehension in Cristiano’s voice.

“He wasn’t the only one who checked it,” Geri says defensively. “Ney and I looked at it too.”

“It was very secure.” Neymar backs Geri’s story up. “I honestly thought we’d make it through the whole winter there, you know?”

Leo visibly tenses again, avoiding eye contact with any of the others.

“I’m going to miss the cabin.” Geri laments. “I can’t believe we lost it.”

“We lost damn near three months’ worth of food.” Sergio thumps the side of the vehicle. “As well as our fucking home.”

“We can’t dwell on it,” Gareth says amicably. “We all knew the dangers, and that it was only temporary.”

“We were on the verge of building something really special there,” Geri sighs.

“What do you propose we do now?” Cristiano asks impatiently.

Geri shrugs, his blue eyes bleary.

“If the herd is moving this way, does that mean that there are less of them in Barcelona now?” Neymar asks hopefully.

“I doubt it.” Sergio huffs. “Can you imagine what dangers lie in the city? I’m not just talking about the dead, but the people that are left behind. It’ll be survival of the fittest. Kill or be killed.”

Geri feels his blood run cold at the thought. He’s just as sceptical about returning to Barcelona as Sergio is.

“I made a promise to Leo, not that it’s worth much now.” Cristiano recalls. “I said we should at least check the city to see if we can find out what happened to any of our loved ones.”

Leo turns his head to look at him, his mouth slightly open.

“You don’t owe him anything,” Gareth says protectively. “It’s like he wanted to trade your immunity to the virus so he could get to Kun.”

Leo scowls, but remains silent.

“Nobody knows he’s immune except for us.” Geri points out. “We should make a deal to keep it that way.”

Several of them nod in agreement. The gesture is not unnoticed by Cristiano.

“All I’m asking is that we check to see if anyone’s left us any messages.” Leo chips in. “We don’t have to stay there.”

Geri closes his eyes and sighs. “It’ll be so dangerous.”

“We might not even be able to get in there.” Sergio muses. “And if we do, I don’t think we’ll like what we find.”

“Geri, please…” Leo’s eyes are full of desperation. “We have to know, we have to see if anybody’s left behind. Don’t you want to help our brothers, our teammates?”

“And we need to know the state of the world.” Cristiano continues. “There must be news on the outbreak, and I’m sure people will be trying to fix this. If we could just find a working telephone line, we could get somewhere.”

Geri shakes his head. On the one hand, he wants to stay safe, but he also knows he’ll find it hard to live with himself if he doesn’t check to see if he can help anybody else. Leo certainly knows how to push his buttons.

“Neymar, what do you think?” Geri asks.

“We should go.” There’s a reluctance to his voice, but he nods decisively.

“I’ll go,” Sergio says, though Geri can detect his annoyance. “But I’m not staying, not if it’s as fucked up as I think it will be.”

“I guess we’ve waited long enough,” Gareth speaks quietly. “We need to know what’s really happening.”

Geri’s stomach rolls with dread. All his instincts tell him that this is a very, very bad idea.

Yet he can’t ignore the other’s pleas forever. He sees their expectant faces all around him, as they wait for his answer, as though his word is law. He realises then he truly is their leader, and they do respect what he thinks.

He owes them the truth, and the chance to reclaim their former lives if it’s at all possible.

He saved them all once, and if he needs to, he’ll do everything in his power to save them again.

“Alright,” he speaks lowly. “We’ll go.”


	8. Barcelona

“You don’t beat around the bush when you’ve got an idea in your head, do you?” Sergio looks over at Geri.

“I don’t see the point in hanging around,” he replies, focused on the road ahead. “If I delayed this journey any longer, it’d only be for selfish reasons.” He glances quickly at Sergio.

“And what would those selfish reasons be?” Sergio licks his lips.

“I don’t think I have to spell it out for you.” Geri smiles knowingly.

“We’re happy, but the others aren’t,” Sergio states. “So, you’re doing what’s best for them, not us.”

“I’m doing what the majority have asked me to do,” Geri sighs diplomatically. “It’s not that I don’t ever want to go back to Barcelona, I just feel that we’re not adequately prepared for the task. Not yet, anyway.”

“Well, you and I aren’t prepared.” Sergio agrees. “We’re the only ones who haven’t had any sleep.” He complains.

Geri briefly darts his eyes towards the back of the bus. Sure enough, the other four men are all out for the count.

“And I’m going to miss the pickup truck.” Sergio continues. “She was a beauty.”

“It’s much safer for us all to be together on the bus.” Geri points out. “We’ll get you another truck.”

“I kept the keys,” Sergio replies. “You know, just in case.”

“Would you look at that?”

Geri’s stomach leaps as the skyline of Barcelona comes into view. He loves this city so deeply and with all his heart. Even though the last few weeks have changed everything, he still feels his lifelong connection with it. Perhaps not even the zombie outbreak can rob Barcelona of its true spirit. Geri prays there’s more left than just looted shops and ruins. Most of all, he hopes the city holds the answers all of them have been searching for.

“You look rather pensive.” Sergio observes.

“Isn’t it weird?” Geri asks. “To see it again?”

“It’s weird to think about anything that existed before all of this,” Sergio replies.

“How would you feel if everything just went back to how it was before?” Geri questions him. “I mean – is that what you want?”

“I want us all to be safe again,” Sergio states.

“Of course – that goes without saying.” Geri interjects.

“But even if the outbreak ended tomorrow, life would never be the same as it used to be,” Sergio says solemnly. “We’re forever changed, all of us.”

“Not all the changes are bad though, are they?” Geri queries.

“I know what you’re getting at, you know.” Sergio smirks.

“You do?” Geri asks.

“Yes.” Sergio affirms. “Even after all of this is done, I still believe you and I will be together.”

“Me too.” Geri smiles.

“I mean, who else would have you?” Sergio laughs darkly.

Geri turns the bus onto one of the main highways that leads into the city. Autumn leaves coat the road in front of him, meaning no one has been there to sweep any of them away. On the opposite side of the carriageway, there’s a queue of abandoned cars.

“God, this is creepy.” Geri shudders. “Look at the cars – there must be hundreds of them.”

“Guess we were lucky to get out of the city when we did.” Sergio observes.

Geri’s skin prickles with nerves. These early signs are not promising.

“It looks like a fucking ghost town.” Leo has stirred from his slumber, and his voice is full of disappointment.

“I’m going to cross the city and head to the gated community where Leo lives.” Geri announces. “Masche and Luis live there too, so maybe they’ll have left word of where they’ve gone.”

He hears Leo swallow hard. “I think that’s a good idea,” he replies.

“Yeah, we don’t want to be throwing ourselves into the deep end of things just yet.” Sergio agrees. “Let’s hope your gated community is more secure than my fence, eh?”

Leo doesn’t reply.

“Well technically we _are_ throwing ourselves into the deep end,” Geri sighs. “We’ve got to hope we can make it across the whole city without any drama.”

They pass more and more zombies as they get towards the centre of Barcelona. It becomes increasingly difficult for Geri to navigate – there are vehicles scattered in the road, as well as luggage and personal items.

“So many people tried to make it out alive,” Sergio says sadly.

“But they didn’t.” Leo’s voice shakes.

“Just because Barcelona is like this, it doesn’t mean Manchester’s the same.” Geri tries to point out kindly.

“If it’d just been Spain, don’t you think other countries would have tried to rescue us already?” Leo’s tone is low and dark.

“You can’t back out now.” Sergio laughs. “You were the one who pushed for us to come here.”

“I’m not backing out.” Leo snaps back.

“It just isn’t what you expected.” Geri frowns.

“I don’t think any of us ever expected to see Barcelona like this,” Sergio replies.

“Oh shit.” Geri’s face drops. “Look.”

Ahead, there’s a massive roadblock. The barrier stretches all the way across the carriageway, with wire fencing behind it. Geri is sure he can make out the outlines of several figures moving around, as though they’re hiding in the shadows.

“They’re human,” Sergio declares.

“How do you know?” Leo asks.

“It’s the way they’re moving,” Sergio replies. “It’s ordered. It isn’t clumsy or uncoordinated – not like a zombie.”

“So, what do we do?” Geri’s voice is shaky, and a feeling of impending dread rises in his stomach.

“I don’t trust them,” Sergio says lowly. “But then again, I don’t trust anyone.”

Geri has no choice but to press his foot down on the brake, slowly bringing the vehicle to a halt. The sudden lack of motion wakes the others.

“I can’t get us beyond that.” Geri gestures towards the obstruction.

“It’s the police!” Cristiano walks towards the front of the bus, his voice cracking with emotion. “We’re safe at last!”

“There’s no proof they’re here to help us.” Sergio warns. “And they don’t look like the police to me.”

“Well, what are you going to do?” Cristiano asks impatiently. “Do you wish to sabotage any chance we might have of being rescued?”

“I don’t know!” Geri throws his hands up into the air. “Just give me a minute to think.” He rests his head on the steering wheel, sighing heavily.

In front of them, two of the men slide open the metal gate. Both wear balaclavas, and their dark eyes are fixed on the bus. They’re armed with large rifles and police grade riot shields.

“This doesn’t bode well.” Gareth observes nervously.

“We should turn around,” Neymar says shakily. “I don’t like the looks of this.”

“Shhh, be quiet.” Geri waves his hands dismissively, squinting as he tries to assess what’s going on.

The two men are pointing and shouting, and they’re joined by three others from their group. It’s impossible to tell what’s truly going on behind the balaclavas that shield their faces, but they’re becoming increasingly animated. Geri rolls the window at his side down a fraction, tilting his head towards it to get a better look.

“They’re Barcelona footballers, I swear to you,” one of the men says.

Geri tenses up at the words. He can sense Sergio hovering over him, trying to listen too.

“Imagine the fucking money this will make us,” another one chips in. “We’ll be safe – living it up on the island.”

“Did you hear that?” Geri asks Sergio. “What island is he talking about?”

“We can’t worry about that right now,” Sergio says dismissively. “Geri, start the engine,” he instructs. “We need to move.”

Geri has seen and heard enough. He turns the key in the ignition.

“Geri, what’s happening?” Cristiano asks.

“I’m pretty sure they want to kidnap us.” Geri swallows hard, feeling his blood run cold. “Whatever this is, it’s not good.”

None of them are naive. Before the outbreak, they dealt with the risks of being well-known on a daily basis. They all had their own individual security arrangements, but in this new world, they’re more vulnerable than ever.

Geri watches as the men tense. He revs the accelerator with his foot, and in an instant, the group run towards them, guns aimed at the bus.

“Move!” Sergio yells.

“They won’t kill us,” Cristiano states. “We’re worth too much to them alive.”

“I’m not being anyone’s hostage,” Sergio snaps bitterly. “And neither is anyone else here.”

Geri puts his foot to the floor, willing the vehicle to surge forward. The men in front of him part ways, getting out of the path of the bus. He drives through what remains of their metal gate barrier, sending fragments of it flying all over the road.

It’s then that the men begin to open fire.

“Oh God, we’re going to die!” Neymar panics.

There’s a horrible noise of metal on metal as bullets begin to hit the back of the bus.

“Can’t you go any faster?” Gareth shouts.

“Gareth, this isn’t a Lamborghini!” Geri exclaims. “It’ll only do eighty or ninety kilometres per hour, tops.”

“They’re aiming for our tyres.” Leo is looking out of the back window.

“Leo, get away from there!” Cristiano yells. “You’ll get shot.”

“Leo, please…” Neymar begs, before covering his eyes with his hands.

Geri breathes a sigh of relief as the bus begins to pick up speed. Gradually, the gap begins to increase between them and their pursuers.

“Okay, I think they might be trying to get into a vehicle so they can follow us,” Leo states. He still hasn’t moved away from the window.

“Shit.” Geri feels his heart sink. “There’s nothing I can do to stop them catching up with us.”

“Just keep going.” Sergio encourages him. “We have a head start.”

Geri takes the exit off the highway, swerving quickly.

“Take a different route to wherever it is we need to go,” Sergio suggests. “You know, just in case we’re being followed.”

“I think we’ve lost them,” Leo shouts. “They missed the turn. Well done, Geri.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Gareth stammers. “You need to keep your eyes peeled, Leo.”

“Yeah, let me know if you see anything.” Geri takes a deep sigh, trying to regulate his breathing.

“Just zombies,” Leo replies. “I can only see zombies.”

“I think I’m beginning to prefer zombies to humans,” Cristiano snaps.

“That was horrible.” Neymar is still shaking. “I don’t even understand what happened.”

“I have no idea who those men were, but they knew about us. They knew we were missing.” Geri shivers.

“Maybe we were on the news or something, you know, when it first happened.” Gareth ponders.

“They were most likely bandits,” Sergio replies. “It’s typical for scumbags like them to wind up surviving. I’d bet the city is full of similar gangs.”

“Exactly.” Geri nods his head. “They were talking about claiming money for finding us. Saying they’d be able to get some island.”

“Fuck that.” Sergio slams his fist against the side of the vehicle. “They were just trying to cash in on a crisis. It makes me sick.”

“They’ll come looking for us.” Neymar sighs. “I know they’ll come looking for us. This kind of thing happens in Brazil all the time.”

“If they come looking, we’ll be ready.” Sergio taps the gun in his pocket. His clothes are still soaked in zombie blood from the encounter back at the cabin. It makes him look even more menacing.

“Good grief.” Gareth gulps. “Sergio, you’re bloody terrifying.”  
  
* * *

Geri ducks and weaves around various roads in the city for the next half-hour or so. It’s an experience he can add to the long list of traumatic events he’s endured since the outbreak started. He sees no indications that there are any human survivors, despite looking for them. There are boarded-up properties with ‘keep out’ signs, and one block of flats that sticks in his mind, because a hastily painted notice outside of it simply reads ‘no survivors’.

As he drives into the suburbs, it’s clear the zombies are thriving. He spots a group of them hunched over bloody remains, it makes his stomach lurch horribly. Others wander through the streets in groups, clumsily knocking into trash cans, regularly stumbling and changing direction. The numbers here are vaster than he’s ever seen – it makes the group they escaped from last night at the cabin seem minuscule.

“Nearly there,” he says as he drives into what he knows was once a beautiful neighbourhood, with gated mansions. Now, the streets are full of leaves and debris. It’s amazing that even a couple of months without human care can take such a toll on the surroundings.

“I don’t even know if I want to see this now.” Leo walks towards the front of the bus. “What we’ve witnessed today has made me lose hope.”

“Don’t think like that,” Geri says reassuringly. “The six of us are still alive, so there’s definitely hope.”

“What are we going to do if there’s nothing here?” Neymar asks.

“We’ll move on,” Sergio states. “We’ll keep moving until we do find answers.”

“Or a safe place,” Geri adds. “I’ll do everything within my power to find us another safe place.”

“Thank you, Geri.” Neymar smiles weakly.

“This is it.” Geri slows the bus down as he takes the final turn onto the road where Leo’s house is.

“I can’t look.” Leo sits with his head in his hands.

An eerie silence lingers as Geri stops the bus and switches the engine off. He takes a deep sigh and looks across at Sergio, as if to try and draw some invisible strength from him.

“Okay,” Leo whispers. “I’m ready.”

“Are we going to go inside?” Geri asks, pointing towards Leo’s house.

“Yes.” He nods, though his voice shakes with uncertainty.

The six men slowly file out of the bus, squinting as they adjust their eyes to the weak winter sunshine. Cristiano walks towards the back of the vehicle, tracing the outline of one of many bullet holes that the bandits left in it with his fingertips.

“Jesus Christ.” He gasps.

“Yeah,” Neymar concurs. “Another day, another near death experience.”

“Leo, do you want us to give you some privacy while you check out your house?” Gareth asks.

“He’s not going in on his own,” Geri says firmly. “He needs someone to watch his back.”

“I want you to come with me, Geri,” Leo replies quietly.

“We’ll wait out here.” Sergio confirms. “If there’s the slightest sign of trouble, you let us know.”

“Of course,” Geri agrees.

“Promise me?” Sergio rests his hands on Geri’s shoulders, staring into his eyes.

“I promise.” Geri smiles back at him.  
  
* * *

“I still have all my keys,” Leo states. “Everything here is under lock and chain. Well, it was electric, but it’s not like that’s going to work anymore.”

Geri watches as Leo fumbles in his pocket and produces a keychain.

“It’s gone rusty already.” He sighs, having to twist and pull the first lock to get it to come undone.

“Let me help you.” Geri moves towards him.

Together, they open the large metal gate that seals off Leo’s house from the rest of the world. As soon as they’re through it, Geri puts his hand on his gun, ready to draw it should there be any enemies. Both men search the immediate area with their eyes.

“I can’t see any zombies,” Leo says quietly.

“Your fencing should have kept them out.” Geri observes. “This place is like a fortress.”

“It had to be,” he replies.

The once immaculate front garden is overgrown, only the weeds that protrude through the paving stones seem to be thriving. Hesitantly, they tiptoe towards the door. Leo stops with a jolt as he hears glass crunching underneath his trainers. He and Geri exchange a look of trepidation. Shattered glass covers the rest of the pathway, leading up to a smashed window.

Somebody else has been here.

“Who would do this?” Leo’s eyes fill with tears. “And how? I don’t get it.”

“I’m so sorry, Leo.” Geri swallows hard.

“I… I’ll unlock the front door,” Leo says hesitantly.

Instinct makes Geri take out his gun again. Mere months ago, Geri would have never even considered holding a weapon with such power. Now, he wouldn’t think twice about using it to take out anything or anyone unsavoury that might be waiting for them inside the house.

It’s murky and musty as they walk through the hallway. Geri follows Leo into the living room. Neither man has ever truly experienced what it is to be short of money, but the large flat screen television and the luxurious leather sofas feel like they belong in another world. With each day that passes, Geri feels more and more detached from his former life.

“I don’t understand.” Leo stops and stares, his hands on his hips. “Everything is exactly where I left it.”

“You mean whoever broke in here didn’t take anything?” Geri furrows his brow in confusion.

“Nothing is missing.” Leo confirms.

“Let’s keep going.” Geri presses.

They move towards the kitchen.

“Oh…” Leo’s face drops.

The kitchen has been completely ransacked. The cupboard doors hang open, having been stripped of their contents. The wooden shelves on the kitchen wall are bare. Water from the fridge-freezer is still pooled on the floor. Leo opens the door and looks inside.

“It’s all gone.” He observes. “Empty.”

“So, whoever came here was only interested in food.” Geri thinks out loud.

Leo starts to pace the room, rubbing his hand on his forehead. “The fence was intact, and the gate too. Only the window was broken.”

“Trying to analyse things isn’t going to help you, Leo,” Geri says gently. “Anybody could have been here, you’ll never know what happened.”

But Leo is a man on a mission. He charges into the backyard, hurrying towards a gate in the furthest corner.

“Leo, slow down!” Geri exclaims. “I can barely keep up with you.”

“Nothing new there, then,” Leo says in a low voice. “Geri, look.”

In Leo’s hand is a thick metal chain and padlock. It’s wrapped around the back gate.

“I know how they got in.” He smiles knowingly.

“But everything is locked up and secure.” Geri points out. “There’s no sign of a break-in, other than the smashed window.”

“Two other people have keys to these gates.” Leo reveals with a half grin.

“Masche.” Geri realises. “And Luis.”

“They were here,” Leo says firmly. “Or at least one of them was here.”

“They made it out of Camp Nou.” Geri breathes a deep sigh of relief and he pulls Leo into a hug.

“We need to check their houses, right now.” Leo presses.

“Let’s go and tell the others.”

Geri feels a surge of hope. It courses through his veins like an adrenaline rush. _We weren’t the only ones who made it out_. He repeats the phrase again and again in his head, like a mantra. He and Leo walk back through the house with purpose, exchanging warm smiles. It’s the first time Geri’s seen Leo genuinely smile in what feels like forever – and it’s beautiful.

But his face changes instantly as the sound of a gun firing rips through the air.

“Get behind me!” Geri shouts instinctively.

“It came from out front, where the bus is.” Leo’s voice is shaking.

Both men edge towards the front gate, their own guns drawn. Geri opens it just a fraction, so they’re both still partially under cover. He peeks around the corner, just in time to see the flash of a van speeding away. The screeching of its wheels fills his ears, and the air is thick with diesel fumes.

Cristiano is lying on the floor, with Gareth and Neymar standing over him.

“Is he hurt?” Geri calls out.

All three men turn to look at him, their faces covered in dirt and tears.

“I tried to stop them,” Cristiano cries. “I really, really tried to stop them, Geri.”

Geri knows then that something bad has happened to Sergio. He doesn’t need them to spell it out for him. He doesn’t want them to say the words.   
  
He can’t live, he can’t exist in a world without Sergio. He’s the only person he’s ever truly loved.

Every muscle in his body turns to jelly, and he collapses onto the floor. He’s vaguely aware of Leo standing behind him, trying to pull him up.

“What the hell happened?” Leo asks.

“They took Sergio,” Neymar confirms. “The gang from earlier. They came back, and they took Sergio.”

That’s the moment when Geri blacks out.

 


	9. Neymar y Gareth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is another of my 'interlude' chapters, concentrating on Neymar and Gareth. I hope you all enjoy reading a bit more about them!

Neymar isn’t scared, despite what the others may think. There was a time in his life when he actively sought out anything that would give him a thrill. Whether it was watching survival horror movies or playing first person shooter video games, he used to enjoy the adrenaline rush. He craved it.

His life definitely isn’t like it is in the movies.

Truthfully, he still hasn’t worked out what all of this is. Apocalypse is such a strong word. It’s not like the earth has been hit by an asteroid or anything. It’s just a sickness. A sickness that kills quickly, and then worms its way into people’s brains, and possesses their human bodies. Neymar has always been a man of faith. He chooses to see the good in people, and to find the light, even when there seems to be nothing but darkness. Neymar still believes – he hasn’t given up on humanity. There are so many smart and intelligent people in the world – doctors, scientists and teachers. Neymar knows he will live to see the end of the outbreak, and that a cure is coming soon.

No, Neymar isn’t scared anymore. Somewhere down the line, he stopped letting fear rule his life. He may have seen and done things he’d never hoped to, but it’s the fear that’s kept him alive. He can’t believe he’s realised this now, at the group’s lowest point.

Sergio is missing, and in his absence, everything is falling apart.

Geri would know what to do, Neymar thinks, if he wasn’t paralysed by his grief. He sits in the road and stares into space, his agony is palpable. But Geri isn’t the only one feeling Sergio’s loss. Over the past few weeks, Neymar has started to regard all the men as his brothers in everything but blood. It’s why he’ll fight tooth and nail for them, and he’ll keep fighting until the end.

“We’ll get him back,” he tells Geri, kneeling beside him. “Whatever it takes, we’ll get him back.” He thinks he sees the slightest flicker of acknowledgement in Geri’s blue eyes, but he can’t be sure.

Neymar looks around at the rest of the group. Leo is leaning against the fence that borders his property, checking his watch. He taps his foot, as though he’s listening to some imaginary rhythm. Neymar can sense his discontent and his impatience. He’s seen Leo like this before, when a match isn’t playing out the way he wants it to. It was Leo who pressed for the group to come here – and Neymar knows he won’t want to leave until he’s found whatever it is he’s looking for.

Gareth still leans over Cristiano protectively. One of the bandits punched him in the face during the scuffle. Cristiano was brave, Neymar thinks. He watches as Gareth gently cups his face in his hand, wiping away some of the blood and dirt. He wonders how Cristiano can be so oblivious to what’s right in front of him. All his talk is of romancing James, when Gareth adores him so openly.

Lastly, he looks at the bus. The FC Barcelona coach was once so luxurious and pristine. No doubt it cost the club hundreds of thousands of euros. Now, it’s pretty much a write-off. Its exterior is pitted with bullet holes, one of the tyres is starting to go flat, and caked mud is splattered randomly on the once shiny paintwork.

The bus has been good to them. It’s the vehicle that allowed them to escape on the very first night of the outbreak. The food and supplies that have kept them alive have been carried safely in it. Now, the mere presence of the bus endangers them. The gang will no doubt look for it.

Neymar knows it’s time to move. If nobody else is going to take charge, then he will.

He turns to Leo. “We have to get out of here. Now.”

“No.” Leo shakes his head firmly. “Masche and Luis are alive. I’m not going until I find them.”

“Leo, are you insane?” Neymar sighs. “Those men have seen us and they’ve seen the bus. They’re out for blood. They’ll be back. We can’t stick around.”

“You’re not our leader.” Leo points out.

“We all have targets on our backs. Can’t you see?” Neymar raises his voice.

“Geri,” Leo calls out. “What’s the plan?”

Geri doesn’t respond. His blue eyes are vacant, as though his soul doesn’t inhabit his body any more.

“Oh Jesus. Fine, let’s check Luis’s and Masche’s houses,” Neymar agrees. “But we’ll be quick, and once we know whether they’re there or not, we’re getting out of here and going somewhere far away.”

“What about Sergio?” Cristiano asks with tears in his eyes. “We can’t leave him with those… _those brutes_!”

“We’re going to get him back,” Neymar says emphatically. He sees Leo flinching in the corner of his eye.

“I wish I could believe you.” Cristiano shakes his head. “But I can’t see how we can possibly save him. We don’t have the skills or the manpower.”

Geri tilts his head towards them. Tears are streaming down his cheeks.

“I don’t think Cris and Geri are up to this.” Gareth glances at Neymar. “They’re exhausted, and Cristiano needs medical attention.”

“We’re all exhausted,” Leo fires back.

“The last time we split up, it didn’t go so well.” Neymar points out. “I won’t have anyone else go missing today.” He can hardly believe it’s his own voice and that he’s speaking to the others so firmly.

“I’ll drive the bus around the corner.” It’s the first time Geri’s spoken since he found out about Sergio being kidnapped. “Cris and Gareth can wait with me while you check the houses out.”

“I’m not happy about this.” Neymar glares.

“I won’t leave until we know,” Leo states.

“Fine.” Neymar sighs. “Fine. But if anything goes wrong, it’s on you Leo.”

Leo swallows hard. Everything that’s gone wrong so far is _already_ on him.

* * *

Gareth isn’t sure how things got to this point. He’s a man who’s always craved simplicity, yet it’s something he’s never got, especially since arriving in Spain. It’s been three years since he moved to Madrid, and just as he finally began to truly grasp the language and his new way of life, the world fell apart. Now Gareth doesn’t know whether he will ever see the green valleys of Wales again. He can’t imagine Cardiff being overrun by zombies, but he has to face the fact that it probably is.

Up until now, Gareth thinks he’s handled the outbreak relatively well. It’s not as though there’s much to be done about it. Ever since he became a professional footballer other people have taken care of everything for him. Not much is different now. Gareth knows he got lucky on that night after _Él Clasico_ , because he was in the right place at the right time.

He only made it out because of Sergio.

They’ve never discussed what happened since then. Sometimes Gareth has nightmares about it, but then there are other times when he racks his brain because he can’t remember. He remembers the noise and the chaos. The sound of the screams will haunt him forever, as thousands of people in the stadium were being bitten before they turned. Gareth knows he ran – he was looking for an exit, but he couldn’t find his way out. There were people running in the opposite direction to him, and he fell over, like an animal caught in the midst of a stampede. It was Sergio’s strong arms that hoisted his shoulders up, and then led him to safety. Sergio took him to a parking lot. It was there they found Geri carrying the wounded Cristiano towards the bus. Neymar and Leo followed him closely, both shell shocked and desperate. That’s how the six of them came to be a group, and how they made their getaway.

Now Sergio is gone, and Gareth never got to thank him properly. Not only have they lost Sergio, but they’ve lost the cabin and the bus too. Gareth is angry at himself. This has been his worst day since the outbreak began. He should have saved Sergio, but he didn’t, because he was too busy fussing over Cristiano.

It’s fruitless to dote over a man who’ll never see him as anything more than a teammate and an acquaintance. Still, Gareth can’t help himself. There are days when Cristiano barely acknowledges him. He knows they’ve only grown closer recently because of the dire situation they’re in, and because Gareth is playing the role of Cris’s protector.

Gareth knows he’ll never be good enough. He doesn’t turn heads like Geri does, nor does he possess the boyish good looks of James. His infatuation with Cris has cost him dearly, yet he can’t give it up.

The three men trudge onto the bus. Geri sinks into the driver’s seat, wiping his red eyes.

“Geri,” Gareth whispers tentatively. “It’ll be okay. We’ll get through this somehow. I miss Serg too.”

“See to Cristiano.” Geri sighs, as though the weight of saying the words crushes him. “I just need a minute to myself.”

“Gareth!” Cristiano calls out from the other end of the bus. “Where’s the first-aid kit?”

“Find it yourself,” Gareth spits the words out angrily.

Cristiano stares back at him with wide, frightened eyes. Blood is still oozing from the cut he got when one of the bandits knocked him to the floor. He opens his mouth to form a response, but his body is shaken by deep sobs.

“Oh Cris, I didn’t mean…” Gareth runs towards him. “Look, the kit’s over here,” he says softly.

“It’s fine, I’ll do it myself,” Cristiano says between cries. “I know everybody is sick of having to help me.”

“It’s not that.” Gareth sniffs. “I’d… well, I’d do anything for you Cris.”

“Would you?” Cristiano looks up at him with interest.

“Yes, of course. Haven’t the last few weeks proved that?” Gareth asks. “I just can’t believe how bad things are right now. We’ve lost absolutely everything.”

“I know.” Cristiano nods. “Believe me, I know.”

“I have no idea where we’ll end up next.” Gareth’s hand shakes as he rummages in the first-aid box. “We’re running out of options.”

“No where’s safe anymore,” Cristiano acknowledges.

“This is going to sting a bit.” Gareth lifts the alcohol wipe towards Cristiano’s forehead. Cristiano winces as Gareth dabs with it gently.  
  
“So, what’s the verdict?” He asks. “Can I still model?”

“You’re beautiful,” Gareth whispers. “And I’m sorry I made you cry.”

“It’s okay.” Cristiano reaches up, placing his hand on top of Gareth’s. “But thank you.”

Gareth can feel himself trembling at Cristiano’s touch. It’s like there’s an electric current running through his body.

“You’re amazing, Cris.” Gareth knows he’s stumbling over his words. “You’re the most beautiful man I’ve ever met.”

Gareth takes a deep breath. It’s now or never. He can’t believe he’s going to try and do this. He’ll be mortified if Cristiano pulls away.

He moves his head closer to Cristiano’s. This reminds Gareth of the first time he tried to kiss someone. It’s awkward and uncertain, as though suddenly, he’s forgotten what he’s supposed to do. Gareth clashes his lips against Cristiano’s clumsily, bumping him in the face rather than being tender and romantic.

“Oh dear,” Gareth mumbles.

“Meu amor,” Cristiano whispers. “Let’s try that again.”

“Really?” Gareth asks, and he strains his neck just to make sure Geri’s not looking.

“Yes.” Cristiano nods. He moves Gareth’s head so that they’re facing one another again. “Don’t worry about Geri. Concentrate on me.”

“I’m not good looking,” Gareth blurts out. “Not like you are.”

“Gareth,” Cristiano says quietly. “You’re a very handsome man, and I like you just the way you are. Now _please_ kiss me. I never normally have to ask so nicely.”

Gareth smiles, and the corners of his blue eyes crinkle at the weight of it. He shifts closer to Cristiano, and this time their lips meet in unison. Gareth kisses him slowly, as though he’s drinking in every second of it. Gradually, it becomes more intense. Gareth parts Cristiano’s lips with his tongue, and lets himself explore his mouth. His body aches and tingles. Even he hadn’t realised how badly he needed this.

“Very nice.” Cristiano is smirking at Gareth, licking his swollen, wet mouth. “Don’t stop now, Gareth.”

“Oh my God, guys. You have to come and look at this.” Geri’s voice cuts through their most personal of moments.

Gareth huffs in disappointment as he gets to his feet, and makes his way to the front of the bus. Cristiano is in close pursuit of him. As he glances out of the window, he can see Neymar and Leo walking back towards them. They aren’t alone.

“I’ve got to give it to Leo,” Cristiano says quietly. “He did it. He actually found some of the others.”

Gareth squints, trying to make out everybody’s faces. He sees Mascherano at the front of the group, confidently strolling next to Leo. He’s slimmer than Gareth remembers him, having lost some of his muscle mass. By his side is Rafinha. He isn’t someone who Gareth knows very well, but he can see the joy in Neymar’s eyes at having been reunited with one of his closest friends. He feels a pang of happiness for the striker. It will be nice for him to have someone of his own age around.

Then there’s Luka. Gareth’s heart soars. Luka, one of his best mates, is seemingly alive and well. This is more than he could have hoped for. He isn’t an emotional man, but his eyes water and he feels as though he’s got a lump in his throat. It’s overwhelming to see more survivors when mere hours ago, all hope seemed lost.

There is one more man with the group. Gareth freezes, feeling every muscle in his body tense up. He can’t believe this is happening, not right here and right now.

“James?” Cristiano trembles, his eyes wide with shock. “Open the door Geri, now! It’s James!”

Gareth watches on helplessly as James runs into Cristiano’s arms, holding onto him tightly. The taste of Cristiano is still on his tongue, yet Cristiano’s lips are now already on another man’s. Gareth has never felt such depths of disappointment and humiliation. He wishes the ground would swallow him up.


	10. Mi Casa Es Su Casa (My House Is Your House)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick note to say that from now on, I'll only be able to update with a new chapter every two weeks because my hours got increased at work :(. Also a trigger warning: some of the discussion about the infection is pretty gross in this chapter!

Geri is torn. It’s as though in Sergio’s absence, he’s forgotten how to feel anything. He knows he should be ecstatic that Masche, Rafa, Luka and James are alive. Truthfully, he is. Seeing other humans – more importantly, humans he knows well – is an indescribable feeling. This time twenty-four hours ago, Geri’s life was based around the cabin and the five men he’d been living there with. He hadn’t allowed himself to believe he’d see other friends and teammates again so soon, not in this turbulent world.

Yet, he cannot muster up any joy. Worse still, he knows the group aren’t going to like it when he tells them he’s not going to be sticking around. He can’t – it’s simply implausible.

“Geri…” Rafa gets to him first and hugs him, burying his head against his chest. Geri watches as embraces and pleasantries are exchanged between the other men. There’s a tentative clinch between Gareth and James. At any other time, Geri would have seen the humour in the situation, but he can’t right now. Next Geri greets James and Luka himself, squeezing them both tightly.

Finally, Masche wraps his arms around Geri, rubbing his back. “It’s so good to see you,” he whispers.

“You too Masche, you too.” Geri sighs softly. “Wait a minute,” he adds, glancing over at Leo, who has tears streaming down his cheeks. “What’s wrong with Leo?”

“I just told him that Kun is okay.” Masche smiles. “At least he was a while back, because I spoke to him a few times during the first couple of weeks of the pandemic.”

Geri steps back, feeling his heart flutter in his chest. He is happy for Leo, but it makes his own pain even more palpable. “Was he safe? I mean… where did he go?”

“He was supposed to be going to some kind of refuge area on an island,” Masche states. “He said he’d wait it out there, and that he wouldn’t go anywhere else until he was reunited with Leo. But then the phones went out, and I haven’t been able to get hold of him since.”

Geri’s mind goes into overdrive. He’s overwhelmed by a sense of déjà vu. He remembers one of the men who took Sergio mentioning an island – and they wanted to get onto it. Perhaps he’s grasping at straws, but it could be an important bargaining chip.

“I have to go,” Geri announces, scraping his fingers through his hair. “I have to go now, to save Sergio.”

Immediately, everybody else’s eyes are on him.

“Geri, you can’t,” Cristiano urges. “You’ll never be able to do it on your own.”

“What do you expect me to do?” Geri’s voice is low and menacing. “The longer I stay here and do nothing, the more likely it gets that they’ll do something stupid. They could hurt him, Cris.”

“They could hurt you, too,” Cristiano fires back. “Or do something even worse.”

“I don’t care anymore.” Geri’s eyes are wild with despair. “I _have_ to go to him. Can’t you see that? I’ll do whatever it takes. I’ll drive around the whole of Barcelona, I’ll search it from top to bottom if need be. I’ll find him, and I’ll save him, because I don’t want to have to live without him.”

“Geri…” Leo blinks back tears. “Geri, please…”

“No, no, no.” Masche holds a hand up firmly. “Nobody is going anywhere, not until we’ve thought this through properly.”

“I wouldn’t expect you to understand.” Geri shakes his head. “I’ve already lost too much time as it is.”

“You and Ramos.” Masche ponders the thought. “Obviously, you’ve only become a couple very recently. I’m not questioning your love for him, I’m just saying that it’s stopping you from seeing things clearly.”

Geri feels as though his blood is starting to boil. He clenches a fist, ready to lunge at Masche. He thinks better of it when Leo pulls at his arm.

“We all want to save Sergio,” Leo says. “Surely, we can find a way to do it.”

“It’s nearly nightfall.” Rafa points out. “Nobody goes anywhere at night anymore. It’s a death wish.”  
  
”We still respect the curfew,” Luka adds. “Even though there isn’t anybody around to enforce it anymore.”

“Curfew?” Gareth asks.

“It’s a long story, and we’ll explain everything when you’re inside and safe,” Masche says definitively.

“That might not be a good idea.” Neymar sighs. “We’ve put your group in danger just by being here.”  
  
“We’re one group now.” Masche drapes his arm around Neymar’s shoulder. “We’ll face all of our problems together, including Sergio and this gang of yours.”

“You have to promise me we won’t waste too much time.” Geri looks Masche in the eye. “Because I’m trusting you with more than just my life here, Masche.”

“I won’t let you down,” Masche says firmly. “I won’t let anybody else down either, not if I can possibly help it.”

“Masche, I hate to bring this up,” James speaks reluctantly. “But how are we going to feed everybody?”

“You don’t have food?” Cristiano asks.

“We’ve been rationing what we have left for the last few days.” Masche frowns. “I was planning another supply run, but there are more and more of the infected, and it’s made it almost impossible to move around safely.”

“There’s plenty of food on the bus,” Geri replies. “We had even more, but we had to leave a lot of it behind. Still, at least it’s something we can help you out with.”

When he sees the relief on their faces it makes his heart pang. These truly are hard times if none of them have even been able to eat properly.

“Are you sure we’re going to be safe here?” Neymar asks. “I’m sorry, but I’m not convinced after everything we’ve seen today.”

Masche lets out a dark laugh. "Believe me, your gang won’t be back tonight.”

“I don’t think they’ll let the dark stop them.” Neymar shakes his head. “There’s a lot of them, and they have vehicles, and a heck of a lot of determination.”

“You haven’t seen what the city is like at night?” Rafa asks, exchanging a glance with Masche. “You really have been away for too long.”

“Let’s get the food out of the bus and into my house,” Masche instructs. “Trust me, we’ll be safe there for tonight. No one will bother us. No one human, anyway.”

  
* * *  
  
”Do you want me to start a fire?” Geri asks, as he carries one of the boxes of food into Masche’s yard.

“What for?” he replies, seemingly perplexed.

“Um, to heat the food up?” Geri manages not to roll his eyes.

“Why would we need that?” Masche laughs. “We have electricity.”

“Holy shit, you have electricity?” Gareth’s jaw drops.

“See for yourself.” Masche smirks proudly as he marches towards his front door, opens it, and switches a hallway lamp on.

The buzz of a generator fills Geri’s ears.

“How did you manage it?” Gareth questions. “Everywhere else is blacked out.”

“You can thank Luka.” Rafa smiles.

“I like to think of myself as the handyman of the group.” Luka grins. “I’ve managed to get hold of and fix up three generators now. They run on gas, and they’re surprisingly economical.”

“Obviously, we have to be selective over how we use them, because we have a limited amount of gas,” Masche explains. “But we can heat food, boil water and we have light when we need it.”

“That’s fucking awesome, Luka.” Gareth beams at his friend. “I never thought I’d be so excited to see a bloody lamp get switched on.”

“I never thought I’d be so excited over canned food,” Masche replies.

Geri notices that one of the generators is being used to charge a cell phone. “Wait…” Geri gestures towards it. “Are you telling me that your iPhone works?” He puts down one of the boxes of food, moving towards the phone to take a closer look.

Luka shakes his head. “All the phones went out during the first fortnight. I try every day for a signal, just in case, but I haven’t had any luck so far.”

“I called everybody in my contacts list during those first few days, trying to find out what had happened to them,” Masche interjects. “I caught up with the guys in Manchester, and a couple of others, but there’s been no new news for around six weeks now.”

“You seem to know more than we do,” Geri points out. “We’ve been completely cut off. I guess the ironic thing was that I was happy in that cabin, despite the obvious dangers. How did things get so fucked up, eh?”

Masche looks at him sympathetically. Geri hates this – he hates all of it. He isn’t someone who enjoys being pitied.

Without speaking, he turns away and heads back to the bus. There are only a few boxes left to unload, once they’re in Masche’s house he can rest and regain his strength so he can rescue Sergio in the morning. He decides to carry two at once, after all, it’ll halve his workload.

By the time he’s reached the front doorstep, Geri’s head is spinning. The skin on the palms of his hands goes clammy with sweat, and his heart rattles angrily in his chest. His stomach lurches uncomfortably, and Geri realises it’s been over twenty-four hours since he last had anything to eat or drink.

“Rafa,” he calls out. “Can you come and take these boxes for me?”

“Sure,” Rafa replies, heading over towards him.

Geri feels an intense sense of relief once the weight is lifted out of his arms. He sinks to the ground, taking several deep breaths.

“Jesus, Geri are you all right?” Rafa’s face is etched with concern.

“Yeah… I’m just tired,” he whispers.

“Here.” Gareth has joined them, and he holds out a bottle of water.

“Thank you.” Geri nods gratefully.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” Masche asks.

“Yes, it’s just been a very long day. Somewhere along the line, when we were avoiding death, I apparently forgot to eat, drink or sleep.”

“You and Sergio were the only ones who didn’t get any sleep on the bus ride over here,” Gareth recalls.

Geri drinks the last of the water. He hadn’t realised how parched his throat was.

“You can take a bath if you like,” Luka says kindly. “We still have running water, you just have to heat it up.”

“This really is luxurious.” Gareth smiles.

“Clean yourself up, Geri,” Masche says softly. “When you come down, I’ll make sure dinner is ready. Then, we can decide what we’re going to do over Sergio.”

Geri thanks Masche again, for what feels like the millionth time that day.  
  
* * *

It’s been so long since he had a proper bath. Geri swishes his hands around in the water, watching as more bubbles form. His skin is red from the heat, and steam gathers on the bathroom mirrors.

  
“Knock knock,” Gareth whispers against the lock. “Geri, can I come in?”

“I suppose,” he answers reluctantly.

Gareth tentatively sits on the edge of the bath next to him. His eyes rove around, as though he’s not sure where to look.

“This is nice.” Gareth observes. “It’s funny to see Masche’s house like this, with all of his good things still in it.”

Geri turns to look at him.

“Sorry,” Gareth says. “I’ve never been very good at small talk.”

“It’s fine,” Geri responds.

“Well, I was going to come up here and ask if you were alright. Then I realised it’d be a bloody stupid question to ask.” He sighs.

“Where do you think he is?” Geri asks. “Do you think they’ll hurt him?”

Gareth puts his hand on Geri’s back. “I can’t answer any of your questions, Geri. I wish I could.” Gareth takes a deep breath. “But I’ll tell you one thing. Sergio won’t give up. He’s a fighter and he’s a survivor, and if anyone can make it through a situation like that, then it’s him.”

Geri feels his eyes welling up with tears again. “Thank you, Gareth,” he says it so softly that it’s barely audible. “I hope you’re right.”

“Guys, are you there?” Neymar calls up the stairs. “Dinner’s ready.”

“I’m starving, but I’m not sure I can eat anything.” Geri admits. “After everything that’s happened, I just don’t feel like it.”

“But none of us have eaten since we left the cabin.” Gareth points out. “Please try, Geri. It’s what Sergio would want. Besides, you’re going to need your strength if you’re going to try and rescue him.”

“Throw me that towel then.” He manages a half smile in response. Deep down, he’s grateful for Gareth’s pep talk. He decides to push himself to join the others for a meal, despite not wanting to.

Gareth turns to leave the room.

“Gareth,” Geri calls after him. “Don’t give up on Cristiano. Show him why he should choose you.”

“Fucking hell,” he responds. “I knew you were watching us.”

Geri laughs as Gareth’s cheeks turn pink.  
  
* * *  
  
Downstairs, the smell of canned meat and vegetables fills the air. Masche is piling the steaming food onto his plate like a man possessed.

“Go easy.” Rafa nudges him. “You’ll make yourself sick if you eat too much at once.”

“I can’t believe how short you’ve been of food.” Leo frowns, only taking a moderate amount for himself.

“As you may have noticed, it’s not exactly safe to go wandering out and about.” Masche sighs.

“At least you made use of the food that was left behind in my house.” Leo adds.

“I’m sorry about that.” Masche hangs his head sadly. “I didn’t want to steal food from you, but we were desperate.”

“It’s nothing.” Leo waves a hand dismissively. “Forget about it.”

Geri joins the other men at the dining table, sticking a fork into his food.

“Wait a minute, where are Luka and James?” Gareth looks around.

“They’re taking first watch,” Rafa confirms. “But we let them take some food with them, of course. They’d have killed us otherwise.”

“First watch?” Cristiano asks.

“Yes.” Masche nods. “We take it in turns to keep watch through the night, just as a precaution. It’s the worst time.”

“The worst time for what?” Geri looks across at him.

“The infected. There are hundreds of them, possibly thousands.” Masche sighs. “They tap on the fence at night, trying to get in. It’s like they can smell us.”

“You mentioned a curfew earlier.” Geri talks as he eats, his curiosity getting the better of him.

“It was strictly enforced the first few weeks of the pandemic.” Masche recalls solemnly. “That was back when we still had an army. Who knows what’s happened to them now?”

“It was fucking scary.” Rafa winces. “They were patrolling the streets with guns, and they had these loudspeakers. They were telling people not to panic, and that the situation would soon be under control.”

“I think the scariest thing is the fact they disappeared,” Masche says gravely.

“So, you don’t think the gang will come back at night because it would be a suicide mission?” Neymar realises.

“There’s no way they’d chance it,” Masche states. “No one uninfected moves in Barcelona by night, it’s far too dangerous.”

“You’ll be lucky if you get any sleep tonight.” Rafa adds. “The noise is immense. There’s tapping on the fence, growling and grunting, it’s a real riot.”

“I’d like to say you get used to it, but you don’t.” Masche chews his food as he speaks.

“We never had any trouble like that back at the cabin.” Cristiano recalls. “At least not for the first few weeks. It was kind of ironic really. We just got a secure fence put into place, and somehow we still got overrun.”

Leo shifts uneasily.

“All this time I’ve been wondering where you were.” Masche’s eyes water. “I never thought about Geri’s holiday cabin.”

“What happened to all of you?” Gareth interrupts. Geri senses he doesn’t want to dwell on the loss of cabin, either. “How did you get out? How did you come to be a group?”

“I don’t even know.” Masche shakes his head. “It was chaos. Rafa, Luka and James were the only other survivors I came across. We basically broke into a vehicle and got out of the stadium. We’ve been holed up here ever since. The only supplies we’ve got have been from places very close by. We haven’t ventured out further. We daren’t.”

“Talk about cabin fever.” Rafa rolls his eyes. “I’m amazed the four of us haven’t gone crazy.”

“You seem to know a lot more about this than we do, though,” Leo points out. “You use words like ‘pandemic’ and ‘infected’. Did anyone give you any information about the outbreak? Did anyone come and try to rescue you?”

“There’s not much information out there now,” Masche says sadly. “The bits we do know are very sketchy. At first on the news bulletins they were comparing the disease to rabies. We know it’s transmitted through bites, and it causes a massive inflammation of the brain, which makes people act out towards the end.”

“Surely that can’t be the whole story.” Geri frowns. “We all saw people get bitten to death in Camp Nou, and then they literally rose from the dead. The actual transition happened very quickly.”

“Geri.” Cristiano holds his hand up. “This is not the kind of conversation I want to be having over my meal. Honestly… I think I want to be sick.”

“Not everybody transitions as quickly as that,” Rafa states. “On the news, they said some people are more susceptible than others. Some turn within an hour, others can take up to 24 hours.”

“The authorities said we were only a fraction of the way into the necessary research.” Masche continues, seemingly ignoring Cristiano’s pleas to drop the subject. “The expectation was that they were going to find a cure, but unfortunately the infection has been spreading a lot more rapidly than they’d hoped it would. It’s just got way out of control.”

“It’s wiped out millions.” Rafa’s voice shakes. “There’s going to be hardly any of us left.”

“There is one interesting thing, though.” Masche pauses between mouthfuls. “The cure they were working on was from human stem cells. Apparently, some people are immune.”

Cristiano abruptly stops eating, and looks to Geri with frightened eyes.

“Perhaps this is a conversation we should have later,” Geri says decisively.

“Are there any other theories?” Neymar asks. “What about this island refuge? Leo said that’s where Kun’s gone.”

“I wish we knew more,” Masche admits. “Luis was here to begin with, and he took his family to the coast. He thought they’d be safe there. But people were stealing boats and trying to get onto the sea. The scenes we saw on TV were chaotic.”

“That was when we still had TV.” Rafa chips in. “At the very beginning, we heard a lot of sirens and helicopters. The sirens stopped after a couple of days, and the helicopters a few days after that.”

“People were turning into those things quicker than they could be rescued.” Masche’s voice shakes. “I thought it was stupid for us to try and move on. Kun’s island is beginning to feel like a pipedream.”

“But obviously, we hope it isn’t.” Rafa frowns.  
  
“Honestly, I don’t even know how we’ve made it this far. Luka’s helped a lot by making sure we had electricity. He’s got a very practical mind. But I’m fucking glad all of you turned up.” Masche manages a half smile.

“Masche.” Rafa smiles. “You’re being very modest. You’re a warrior, you’ve kept us safe.”

“Just like Geri did with us.” Neymar looks over at him.

Geri puts his fork down, suddenly having lost what little appetite he had. “I didn’t do enough,” he whispers. “Otherwise Sergio would be here eating this meal with us right now.”

An awkward silence lingers.

“Perhaps we should talk about what we’re going to do tomorrow,” Masche says. “Because I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m not letting those fuckers drive us out of my house until we’re ready to go.” Masche raises his voice. “And they’re not keeping Sergio either.”

“What are you going to do?” Leo asks cautiously.

“The way I see it, we have several options.” Masche begins. “But I have one that I particularly like.”

“I’m actually afraid to ask what it is.” Geri sighs.

“They took Sergio, right?” Masche furrows his brows angrily. “It’s simple. We’ll take one of their group in return.”

“Like a hostage exchange?” Neymar asks.

“This is sick. I can’t be part of something like that.” Cristiano turns pale.

“Cristiano is right,” Gareth replies defiantly. “If we do something like that, then what have we become? We shouldn’t let this outbreak rob us of our humanity.”

“I’m not suggesting we hurt anyone,” Masche says dismissively. “Well, not unless they try to hurt us first.”

“Surely stealth would be a better option,” Neymar suggests. “We could head out early, and stake their place out. Eventually, one of them has got to lead us to their base – and hopefully Sergio.”

“It’s risky.” Masche sighs. “Not to mention time consuming. As Geri has already pointed out, time is very much of the essence.”

“If you ask me,” Cristiano declares. “Our odds aren’t that great with either option. Maybe it should be Geri’s decision. How far are you willing to go to rescue Sergio?”

Geri shifts uncomfortably in his chair. Every single man in the room is looking at him. Their glares weigh heavily on him.

“I know what I want to do,” he says quietly. “I know exactly what I want to do.”


	11. Corazón de León (Heart of a Lion)

Against all the odds, Geri sleeps. He is woken by the very same noise that lulled him into his uncomfortable slumber – the zombies scrabbling at Masche’s fence. A quick check of his watch tells him it’s 4:30 a.m., which means he’s been out for around three hours. His body still aches with fatigue and his eye sockets throb with the threat of migraine. He rubs at his temples futilely. Now is not the time for him to give into his own physical weaknesses; he’s so close to putting his plan to rescue Sergio into action. Geri knows he must stay strong.

The repetitive grunts and groans of the undead continue to ring out into the night. Geri puts his fingers in his ears, but there’s nothing he can do to block out the noise. It’s maddening. He understands now how certain sounds can drive a person to insanity.

Masche made it very clear before they went to bed: all the curtains were to remain closed, and no one was to use any of the lights unless absolutely necessary. Geri’s never been the kind of person who enjoys sticking to the rules, especially not when curiosity gets the better of him.

He creeps towards the bedroom window, daring to peek behind one of the curtains. Though it’s still pitch black outside, Geri can make out hundreds of moving figures in the shadows. It sends a shiver of fear through his whole body. Sergio is out there somewhere, alone. Wherever he is, Geri hopes he’s safe from the relentless hordes of zombies.

“Creepy, isn’t it?”

Geri jumps, having been caught off guard. He didn’t know he had company. Leo is staring at him with wide eyes. Geri thinks he looks frightened and childlike in the dim light, like a kid who can’t sleep through the night on his own.

“Yeah,” Geri whispers. “The others weren’t lying about how bad it is here in the city.”

“I know.” Leo sighs, inching forward hesitantly.

“I can’t say Masche’s reassurances fill me with confidence.” Geri backs away from the window, sitting back on his bed. “Hearing them pushing and tapping against the fence… it makes me think about the cabin, you know? It was easy enough for them to break in there, and we were dealing with much smaller numbers."

“Masche’s fence is safe,” Leo states. “I’m sure of it.”

“Sergio thought ours was,” Geri replies sadly. “Anyway, I should get dressed. We’ll be setting off for the highway soon. I can’t wait until all this is over and Sergio is back with us.”

“That’s… that’s kind of why I’m here.” Leo still stands in the doorway, consciously keeping a gap between himself and Geri.

“It is?” Geri looks at him cautiously.

“I don’t want to do this, but I have to.” Leo scratches nervously at his beard. “I can’t let you go. Both plans are too dangerous. You’ll never make it out alive.”

“Is that so?” Geri narrows his eyes. “Leo, I can’t just do nothing. I can’t leave him out there – he wouldn’t let that happen to any of us.”

“You have to let me help,” Leo stresses. “I can put this right, Geri. I know I can.”

“Leo, seriously… none of this is your fault,” Geri says kindly.

“But it is,” Leo frets. “Geri, _all_ of this is my fault.”

“I don’t understand.” Geri shakes his head, looking Leo up and down.

“I need to tell you the truth.” Leo’s voice croaks. “Then you have to let _me_ rescue Sergio. I owe it to you. I owe it to everyone.”

Geri visibly tenses. “Leo, will you slow down? Just talk to me. We’ve always been able to talk to each other, haven’t we?”

“You’re going to hate me.” Leo sighs. “I can’t stand the idea of you hating me.”

“I could never do that,” Geri responds quickly. “No matter what."

“What I’m about to tell you will change that.”

“Okay.” Geri swallows hard, and he feels his stomach clench with nerves. In the shadow of darkness, he’s sure he can see tears forming in Leo’s eyes. Whatever this is, it can’t be good. Leo is usually so stoic.

Leo sits on the end of the bed, muttering something under his breath, as though he’s trying to gather his thoughts. The noises he emits from his lips are so quiet that Geri can hear nothing but the grunts of the zombies outside.

“It was me.” Leo turns his head towards Geri. “I sabotaged the fence.”

“ _What_?" A wave of strong nausea hits Geri.

“I put a hole in it,” Leo whispers.

“Why?” Geri’s heart races with panic. “Why would you do such a thing?”

“I… I just wasn’t thinking properly,” Leo confesses. “I couldn’t take being stuck there a moment longer. I had to find out what was happening in the outside world.”

“So, you put all of us in danger?” Geri struggles to hide the contempt from his voice. “You were right. Everything that’s happened _is_ your fault, Leo. We lost a good chunk of our supplies and our home. We almost got killed by that gang, and then they took Sergio! And all of it is because of you. I can’t believe it. I can’t believe you would do this.”

“I’m sorry,” Leo says emphatically. “I’m so sorry. I know how wrong I was…”

“Well, at least you know Kun is alright,” Geri snaps bitterly. “I hope it was worth it.”

“I still don’t know he’s alive for sure.” Leo’s voice breaks up. “But coming here and finding out there’s a good chance he’s okay has helped me put things into perspective.”

“Oh, I’m _so_ glad it was useful to you.” Geri glares at him.

“Geri, you need to listen to me,” Leo pleads with him. “I can help you. I can make this right. I have a better plan to rescue Sergio. I’m not going to let you do anything stupid – something you might come to regret.”

“How considerate of you.”

Somehow, Geri struggles onto his feet and walks towards the window, turning his back to Leo. He closes his eyes, making a conscious effort to regulate his breathing. When they’re closed an image of Leo pops up in his brain. He sees Leo on the first day he met him, as a teenager who had just moved to Barcelona. He was so shy it took him weeks to even speak to Geri. Leo’s vulnerability made him the perfect target for cruel bullies. Except none of them ever bullied him again after Geri threatened to kick their asses. They were friends before Leo had even met Kun, and long before Geri loved Sergio. They’ve always been close. Geri never thought Leo would betray him like this.

He squeezes his eyes shut painfully, trying to rid himself of the memories.

“Geri, about the plan.” Leo pauses.

“I don’t care about your plan,” Geri retorts. “You can stay here with the others. I don’t want you having anything to do with this.”

“I knew you’d be like this if I told you the truth.”

Geri is vaguely aware of Leo standing behind him, probably too afraid to come any closer.

He should hate him for this. Not just because Sergio is missing, but because Leo’s actions put every single one of them in danger. Yet Leo couldn’t have possibly realised the chain of events he set off when he put _that_ hole in the fence.

“Geri…”

He hears Leo’s rapid breaths now, and senses the fear in his shaky voice.

“Just leave me alone,” Geri demands. “I need to concentrate on getting Sergio back.”

“No,” Leo replies resolutely. “No, I can’t let you do it without me.”

“I have nothing to say to you,” Geri says coldly. “Masche and I made a plan.”

“Geri, using force will never work. You’ll get killed.” Leo stresses the last word. “You know how crazy Masche gets when he’s angry.”

“What does your plan involve, Leo?” Geri turns around to look at him. “Should we just leave and look for Kun’s mystery island? Perhaps we can pretend Sergio never existed.”

“No. Don’t be stupid.” Leo shakes his head. “I have a much better plan.”

“Leo…”

“We go back to the roadblock where we originally found the gang and we offer them a different hostage in exchange for Sergio,” Leo states confidently. “Me.”

Geri stares at him in horror. “Absolutely not,” he replies defiantly. “I would never let that happen. Even after all of this, I’ll still protect you with my life.”

Something in Leo’s face softens. “I’m glad you said that, because personally, I like my Plan B a lot better.”

“Make this quick,” Geri replies impatiently. “Because in about half an hour, Masche and I will be leaving.”

“They have to have Sergio locked up somewhere, right?” Leo pushes. “He won’t be roaming around freely. He’ll be somewhere secure.”

“I guess.” Geri furrows his brows. He has no idea where Leo is trying to go with this.

“So, we stake their place out, and work out where he is first,” Leo states. “Then, we send the zombies in and we let them do the hard work.”

“Wait… _what_?”

“Let me sabotage _their_ fence.” Leo smiles. “We’ll overrun them.”

Geri stares at him in disbelief. When he lifts his gaze up, he sees Masche standing at the bedroom door. He has no idea how much of their conversation he’s overheard.

“That might just be crazy enough to work.” Masche smirks.

* * *  
  
Sergio Ramos is nobody’s bitch. That’s what makes him so angry. How dare _anyone_ punch him in the face and then take him as their hostage?

No, he simply won’t stand for it. He’s going to give this gang hell. He’ll make them sorry for ever daring to mess with him.

What he needs is a plan. There must be a way out of wherever it is they’re keeping him. It’s impossible to focus his eyes through the blindfold shielding his eyes. All he can see is black. His wrists ache from the rope that’s tied tightly around them, binding his hands behind his back.

He staggers to his feet, cautiously creeping forward. Almost immediately, he bumps into a wall. He turns his cheek and presses it towards it. There’s an icy coldness that’s unmistakably metal. Sergio remembers briefly seeing the huge metal storage facilities by the side of the road when the gang originally stopped them. He knows he must be in one of them, trapped in the gang’s compound. He walks in the other direction. The box itself must only be a few feet long. He paces up and down it, struggling to run his tied hands along the surface. He winces as he finally finds what he’s been looking for – a sharp piece of metal where two of the sheets join.

_Perfect_. Sergio smiles to himself. If he can rub the rope that binds his hands together against the sharp metal, then eventually, he’ll be able to cut through it. He knows it won’t be easy. He has hours of work ahead of him, but he won’t give in.

Somewhere down the line, Sergio loses track of time. It must be night, he tells himself. When he first arrived here, there was a lot of noise. He heard vehicles coming and going, and members of the gang barking instructions at each other. Now, he hears nothing but the distant rumbling of the zombies. They must be at the roadblock, fighting to get past the barriers. They have no chance – from what he’s seen the gang have built a fortress.

Whenever he feels his energy levels lagging, he thinks of Geri and the others. He needs to get out so he can stop the gang from going back to Leo’s street and kidnapping anyone else. It’s the thought of being back with Geri, curled up against his warm body, that spurs him on during his lowest moments.

The rope is beginning to fray. His wrists aren’t bound as tightly as they were in the beginning, he’s sure of it. Sergio rubs the rope against the sharp metal more furiously. _Come on_ , he screams internally. _Just_ _fucking break_.

When the rope finally rips apart, he has to suppress a yell of jubilation. This gang is truly the worst gang in the history of gangs – they couldn’t even tie him up properly.

He slides the rope away, freeing himself. His wrists are numb from the tightness, and he shakes them, trying to get the blood flowing. Next, he unties the blindfold. It’s still dark, and it takes him a moment to get his bearings. There’s the smallest crack of light where the double doors meet at the end of the storage box. Sergio creeps towards it. He can make out one young looking guy who’s obviously been tasked with watching him overnight. There’s a gun in his hand, but Sergio is courageous. He knows he can take him out if he’s smart about this.

Reluctantly, he loosely ties the blindfold back around his eyes and holds his hands behind his back. In the poor light, no one should be able to tell that he’s actually freed himself.

“Hey!” He screams towards the door. “Let me out you fuckers, I need the bathroom!”

The young gang member approaches him. “I can’t let you out until dawn. You’ll have to hold it in for another hour or so, or go in the corner or something, I don’t know.”

“You can’t be serious,” Sergio barks back at him. “You’re treating me like a fucking animal!”

“I don’t make the rules, man.” Sergio senses the slightest hint of insecurity in his captor’s voice. He pounces on it.

“So, you’re saying no one will let you decide how to look after me?” Sergio snorts. “That’s ridiculous.”

“You’re valuable to us,” the guy replies. “This situation needs to be handled properly.”

“Why am I valuable?” Sergio has no idea where this conversation is going, he just knows he has to keep the young man talking. It might lead to a window of opportunity.

“You’re going to help us get to the island, aren’t you?” His captor pipes up. “Footballers, celebrities and that… well you get in automatically, don’t you?”

“I hate to break it to you, but I don’t know anything about any kind of island. I’ve been holed up in the woods since this first happened.” Sergio smirks. “You obviously know a lot more about the apocalypse than I do.”

“You don’t know anything?”

“No.”

“Shit, the boss isn’t going to like that.” The gang member huffs. “We’ll still be able to use you to get in though, I’m sure of it.”

“I can’t do a lot for you while I’m locked in here,” Sergio says sarcastically.

“Don’t try to play games with me.” The guy fires back. “I’m not even meant to be talking to you.”

“Oh, come on,” Sergio whispers. “At least tell me about the island.”

“Well, it’s a group of islands, technically. The Balearic Islands.”

“You’ve got to be joking.” Sergio fails to hide the anger in his voice. “All of this is about the Balearic Islands? You could sail there yourself! It wouldn’t be difficult.”

“No, I couldn’t.” For a moment, the gang member falls silent. “They only let important people in – doctors, scientists, celebrities and rich people. Folks like me get shot on sight. That’s if we even make it to the ocean. People were killing each other for boats, and then once they got out there, the army shot them down before they could get to land. It was on the news – before they stopped making the news.”

Sergio’s blood runs cold. He feels a twinge of sorrow for this young man, trapped in such a cruel world. “I had no idea things were so bad.” He takes a deep breath.

“The doctors over in Ibiza and Mallorca, they’re working on a cure from human stem cells. I keep wanting to believe that when they’ve found it they’ll send search teams back for any remaining survivors. But they won’t. It’s bullshit. Nobody cares about ordinary people like me. They’re prepared to let us rot.”

“Is that why you’re in the gang?”

“Yes,” he replies solemnly. “You or one of the other footballers have to get me in there. It’s my only shot at staying alive.”

“Jesus Christ.” Sergio sighs. “We would have helped you, me and the other lads. You didn’t have to choose this path.”

“It wasn’t my choice.”

“You know we don’t even have a boat, right?” Sergio admits.

“We’ve got one,” the gang member states. “It’s on a transport lorry, in one of the lock ups here.”

Sergio swallows a lump in his throat. It’s the first time he’s heard any news about the reality of life since the outbreak, and the revelations the gang member has made have stunned him. A rush of guilt hits him when he realises he still has to outsmart this young man, and that by doing so, he will probably condemn him to having to stay in Barcelona. It will be a hopeless existence. Sergio is angry at the world for handling the apocalypse so badly.

His momentary distraction comes to an abrupt end when he hears a shrill gunshot pierce through the air.

“What the fuck is going on?” He barks the question at the young man.

“I don’t know.”

Sergio puts his ear against the gap at the doorway. He is aware of footsteps as the gang member walks away from him. He hears several voices – the gang are talking to each other over radios they’re carrying. It’s almost impossible to make out what’s being said, until one particular voice stands out. There is a man shouting hysterically down the line.

_Breach. I repeat, there’s been a breach on the fence at the north side_.

Sergio’s heart beats rapidly in his chest.

“Let me out!” He screams. “Let me out, and we’ll get into a vehicle and I’ll help you get to the Balearics. Please!”

Sergio can hear more of the zombies now. There are shots and screams in the distance, but there is no reply from the man who was watching him. He has vanished into thin air. Sergio yanks his blindfold off – there’s no point in keeping up the ruse anymore. He throws his whole body against the door repeatedly, shoving at it and shoving at it. It’s no use. The lock simply won’t give.

“Help!” He yells. “Someone come and fucking help me!”

“Alright, since you asked so nicely.”

Sergio falls to his knees in astonishment. How is this possible?

Gareth opens the door and pulls him up onto his feet and into a hug.

“Gareth,” Sergio whispers through his cries. “I can’t believe it’s you.”

“It’s going to be okay now, Serg.” Gareth cups his face in his hand. “But we have to be quiet and we have to run out of the compound quickly, while the gang are still keeping the zombies busy.”

“This… this was you?” He asks breathlessly.

“It was Leo’s idea, actually,” he replies quickly.

“Is Geri… is he here?”

“He and Leo are waiting in a vehicle on the south side.” Masche has appeared from behind Gareth. “Now come on Sergio, we need to move.”

“Masche?” Sergio’s jaw drops. “You’re alive?”

“Do I look like one of the infected to you?” Masche arches his eyebrow playfully, before handing Sergio a gun.

They tiptoe past the first row of metal containers. Sergio allows himself a glance to the right, and he gets a quick visual of the carnage. The gang are being picked off one by one by the zombies. It’s like something out of a horror movie, and Sergio’s stomach churns as he is hit with the realisation that everything he’s seeing is very, very real.

“We don’t have much further to go,” Masche states.

A little way ahead of them, a zombie blocks the path.

“Shit.” Gareth exclaims, pulling a knife out of his pocket.

“Wait…” Sergio squints in the dawn light. He recognises the zombie as one of the gang members. He must’ve only very recently turned. Even though he never fully saw the guy’s face, instinct tells Sergio that this zombie used to be the young man who was tasked with watching him.

Gareth raises his knife, and Sergio grabs his arm to stop him.

“Let me do it.” Tears blur Sergio’s vision. He takes Gareth’s knife and plunges it between the creature’s eyes. He watches as his lifeless body crumples to the ground. “You were just a kid, barely even a teenager. I’m so sorry,” he whispers.

“We need to go,” Masche stresses.

They sprint forward now, and for Sergio, the brief moment feels like an eternity. He hears the roar of an engine starting somewhere in front of them, and is then blinded by the glare of headlights.

“That’s them!” Gareth calls out enthusiastically.

Sergio can make out Geri’s face, peering out at them from behind the windscreen.

“There’s another hole in the fence for us to crawl through.” Masche points out.

Sergio feels as though he can’t trust his own legs any more, and that they’ll give way underneath him at any moment. As if he senses his exhaustion, Gareth hoists him up with his arm, dragging him towards safety.

“I never did thank you for what you did for me that night in Camp Nou,” Gareth whispers.

“I think you’ve more than made up for it.” Sergio manages a small smile.

“You go first, Sergio.” Masche pushes him towards the small hole. Sergio squeezes through it. The others follow him closely.

“Get in!” Leo opens the car door, ushering the three men towards it with frantic arm gestures.

As soon as they’re safely inside, Geri floors the accelerator. Sergio closes his eyes, putting his head back on the seat. He tries hard to catch his breath. He’s briefly aware of the car hurtling down the highway. It’s only when it slows down to turn off the main road that he dares to opens his eyes. A few yards later, Geri brings the vehicle to a halt. As the engine is turned off, all Sergio can hear is his ears ringing.

“Sergio…” Geri turns around and faces him from behind the driver’s seat.   
  
Sergio lurches towards him and pulls him into the tightest possible hug. He buries his head onto his shoulder, breathing in the scent of his skin.

“Geri,” Sergio whispers. “Oh, Geri.”


	12. Estoy Bien, Lo Prometo (I'm Okay, I Promise)

After they return to Masche’s house, they do nothing but lie together on the bed, holding onto each other.

“You’ll let one of us know if you need anything, right?” Leo asks cautiously, before Masche ushers him out of the room. Geri breathes a deep sigh of relief as he hears the door close quietly behind them. Finally, they’re alone.

“I can’t believe I missed out on you finding more survivors,” Sergio laments, as he runs his fingers through Geri’s overgrown hair. “And I feel like a dick for not having said hello to everyone properly yet.”

“I didn’t want you to feel overwhelmed.” Geri sighs softly, pressing a kiss to Sergio’s neck. “Everyone was pretty excited when they discovered we’d brought you back with us.”

“They probably didn’t expect you to pull off the rescue,” Sergio says honestly.

“Oh, I knew we’d pull it off.” Geri stares up at him with piercing blue eyes. “Because I wasn’t going to come home without you. It was that simple.”

“I’m glad you didn’t give up on me.” Sergio presses their noses together.

“Never.” Geri kisses him gently. “As stupid as it sounds, I don’t want to exist if I don’t have you.”

“It doesn’t sound stupid.” Sergio flashes him the smallest of smiles. “After all, I am pretty awesome.”

“Fuck you!” Geri nudges him playfully in the chest. “I went through hell while you were away, every second of it was agony.”

“And now I’m back to give you more hell.” Sergio kisses his ear lobe.

Geri closes his eyes, and allows himself a moment to take everything in. Sergio is back and he’s alive and well. Yet it doesn’t mean he’s completely unharmed – an experience like this must have traumatised him, and Geri knows he must tread carefully, because now Sergio needs him more than ever.

“You’re quiet,” Sergio observes.

“I am?”

“Yes,” he murmurs. “I’m sorry, you know. Sorry for everything I put you through.”

“Don’t apologise,” Geri whispers. “I just want you to be okay.”

“Well I am – physically at least,” Sergio replies honestly.

“That’s kind of what I was worried about.” Geri bites his lip. “I have no idea what I can do or say to help you so the kidnap doesn’t prey on your mind anymore. I wish I could make the bad memories go away.”

“Being here with you helps.” Sergio wraps his arms around Geri tightly. “The rest will ease with time… to an extent.”

"What did they do to you?” Geri dare hardly speak the words. “Did they threaten to hurt you?”

“No. Nothing like that.” Sergio shakes his head. “You won’t believe the stuff that’s _actually_ getting to me.”

“Try me?” Geri asks gently.

“In the end, I felt sorry for them.” Sergio’s eyes fill with tears.

“Sergio, of all the things you should be feeling right now – sympathy for the gang is not one of them." Geri looks into his eyes. “They kidnapped you.”

“I can’t believe I let the zombies kill them.” Sergio’s voice shakes.

“ _You_ didn’t. All of that was on us,” Geri points out.

“I was still locked up when the zombies first got in,” Sergio recalls. “I didn’t even know what was happening.”

“Sergio…" Geri frowns. Perhaps initiating this conversation was a bad idea after all. It’s too soon… much too soon.

“The kid who was watching me… he was fucking terrified,” Sergio says in a low voice. “He said the only reason they took me was because they’re only letting doctors and rich people onto these islands. All they wanted was for us to help them get to safety.”

“Jesus Christ.” Geri’s jaw drops in shock.

“I think I saw him again, you know.” Sergio continues. “When Gareth and I were escaping.”

The realisation of what Sergio is saying hits Geri. “Let me guess… he’d turned.”

Sergio nods. “I put him out of his misery. I had to. It was the right thing to do.”

Geri holds Sergio’s trembling body in his arms. He lets him cry, feeling powerless when Sergio is overcome with deep sobs that make his whole body shake. He’s never seen him like this before – so weak and vulnerable. It breaks his heart.

"I’m so sorry,” Geri whispers. “We made it worse. If we’d known, we would have acted differently."

“You couldn’t have known, and you rescued me, against all the odds. That’s valiant,” Sergio admits. “I would have done the same for any of the other lads. I would have tried to rescue them at any cost.”

“We genuinely thought you were in grave danger,” Geri confesses.

“So did I, and by the time I knew any different it was too late to negotiate with them.” Sergio sighs. “I can’t believe how fucked up things are. I wish we’d stayed in the cabin, eating your horrible mushrooms every day.”

“My mushrooms were amazing,” Geri insists. “At least they were a source of fresh food.”

For the first time that morning, Sergio laughs. The sound of it warms Geri’s mood.

“I’ll get you through this, Sergio. Whatever it takes,” Geri promises.

“I know you will.” Sergio smiles. “You’re probably the only person on earth who can.”

“I love you.” Geri stares straight into Sergio’s eyes.

“I love you too,” Sergio replies. “The thought of getting out of there and coming back to you – that’s what kept me alive,” he stresses.

“Don’t you worry – I’m never letting you out of my sight again.” Geri smiles.

“You always did want to stalk me, long before the zombies were around.” Sergio rolls his eyes playfully, but Geri can see the dark circles that are beneath them. “Whether it was on Twitter or if you were giving a quote to some random journalist or something… it was always about me. I hate to break it to you Geri, but you’re obsessed.”

“You seem to know an awful lot about what I was doing back then.” Geri smirks suspiciously. “Besides, isn’t that what love is? It’s a kind of obsession.”

“Yes, Geri.” Sergio plants a kiss to his head. “Love is an obsession.”

For a moment, silence hangs in the air between them.

“What are we going to do now?” Geri finally asks. “After everything we’ve been through?”

“We’re going to live,” Sergio states. “And we’re going to make the best of every single moment.”  
  
* * *  
”Are you sure he’s up for this?” Masche asks cautiously, meeting Geri at the bottom of the stairs.

“I think so.” Geri nods. “It might even do him good.”

“It’s just that I think it would raise everyone else’s spirits,” Masche points out. “These past couple of months haven’t been easy. We’ve all managed to reunite as a group, and that was a miracle in itself. I think it deserves a celebration.”

“Let’s have the celebration we should have had yesterday.” Geri pats Masche on the back.

Luka stands in the kitchen doorway, his narrow eyes glistening with tears. He launches himself at Sergio, who gladly pulls him into a hug.

“Lukita.” Sergio rubs his back, pulling away to look at him. “I always knew that out of all of us, you’d know how to handle a zombie apocalypse. Geri told me it was you who got the electricity working. I’m proud of you, man.”

“You have no idea how good it is to see you,” Luka responds simply.

“It’s not nearly as good as it is to see you.” Sergio smiles.

Geri doesn’t stay and watch the rest of their conversation. He’s sure Luka and Sergio have a lot to catch up on. He makes his way into the kitchen, where he is greeted with the smell of burning.

“Geri!” Leo looks over at him helplessly. “The beans are all sticking to the pan.”

“Leo, you _have_ been stirring them, right?” Geri half smiles, grabbing a spoon from the kitchen table. “Here.”

“Thanks.” Leo’s cheeks turn pink. “How is Sergio doing?”

“Pretty good, all things considered.” Geri rubs at his beard nervously.

“I’m glad to hear it.” Leo focuses his gaze solely on the pan, as though he’s consumed by the task in front of him. “Did you tell him it was me who sabotaged the fence back at the cabin?”

Geri knows Leo well enough to know that he’s trying to ask the question light-heartedly, but deep down, the stress of the situation is eating away at him.

“No.” Geri shakes his head.

Leo turns to look at him. “Are you going to?”

“Not at the moment.” Geri folds his arms.

“That doesn’t sound very promising.” Panic flashes in Leo’s eyes.

“The only reason I’m not comfortable with hiding this from Sergio is because I don’t want to lie to him.” Geri sighs. “But I don’t want him to hate you either.”

“I’ve put you in a pretty shitty position,” Leo admits.

“I don’t see the point in telling him or any of the others right now.” Geri decides. “What good would it do? It wouldn’t change anything.”

“Thank you,” Leo replies shakily.

For once in his life, Geri can think of nothing to say.

“Does this mean you’ve forgiven me?” Leo pushes.

“It means that I think I undersand why you did it,” Geri confesses. “You were in a dark place, and I know you have a good heart. I know you didn’t mean to put anybody else in danger.”

Leo frowns. “Okay.”

“My response wasn’t what you were hoping for?” Geri asks.

“It’s as much as I could expect.” Leo looks down again. “It’s probably more than I deserve.”

“What’s more than you deserve?” Sergio saunters up to them, eyeing the contents of the pan.

“He burnt some of the beans.” Geri smiles, but it is forced. He hopes Sergio is so hungry that he won’t see through it.

“How much longer until we can eat?” Neymar calls over.

“Go with the others and sit at the wooden table in my backyard!” Masche scolds.

“But it’s cold!” Neymar complains.

“No, it isn’t.” Masche shakes his head. “It’s a lovely day for us all to sit outside together for a nice meal.”

Geri watches as Neymar stomps outside, with Rafa close behind him.

“It almost feels like we’re going to have one of our regular Sunday barbecues,” Leo says nostalgically.

“Except with canned food.” Geri laughs.

“It’s a meal fit for kings.” Sergio smiles. “Let’s go.”

  
* * *  
  
Geri looks carefully at each of the nine other faces sitting around the table in the weak wintry sunshine. Each of them are survivors, and they’ve all endured their own personal journeys en route to this point.

For once the air is free of tension, and the mood is jovial and celebratory.

Masche is spooning beans onto plates for Neymar and Rafa. It makes him feel good, Geri thinks, to father the two young Brazilians. Cristiano and James only have eyes for each other. Sergio is eagerly telling Luka and Leo about how he freed himself from the ropes that were tied around his wrists at the gang’s hideout. No, he was never scared. Yes, he always knew he was going to get out.

Geri shakes his head and turns away. His eyes meet Gareth’s. Geri watches as he plays with his food, and he senses Bale is trying hard not to let his emotions betray him. He simply cannot stand to see Cris and James reunited. That much is evident.

“Right,” Masche says, producing a bottle of wine from under the table. “I know it’s not chilled, but I had this in my house and decided to save it for a special occasion.”

There is a loud pop as he removes the cork. Everyone’s eyes are fixed on him.

“Sergio,” Masche continues. “I’m sure I speak for everybody when I say how happy I am that you’re back with us, safe and sound.”

Sergio waves a hand dismissively, but Geri knows him well enough to know he’s loving the attention.

“Luka, Rafa, James and myself never gave up hope – that’s why we stayed here, because we believed we weren’t the only survivors, and one day, other people would find us.” Masche’s face reddens with emotion.

The bottle of wine is being passed around the table, as everyone fills their glasses.

“We’re so glad the six of you came here, and that we’re all together now, as one big group. Let’s make a toast.” Masche raises his glass. “To all of us.”

The words are repeated by everyone.

“That was nice, Masche,” Cristiano congratulates him, before sipping on his wine. “I didn’t realise how much I’d missed having wine with my meals, either.”

“I miss everything.” Neymar sighs. “Everything about life before the apocalypse. But I’m glad that we’re all together.”

“I wonder where Kun is right now,” Leo ponders. “I hope he’s safe, and he’s eating dinner with people he cares about too.”

“He’s probably at the Balearics with everybody else who can afford to get in there.” Sergio shrugs, as though this statement is the lightest one he could make in the world.

Everybody stops eating.

“The Balearics?” Geri repeats the name slowly. “What do you mean?”

“That’s where everybody’s gone. A member of the gang in the hideout told me,” he says quietly.

“Are you sure you want to talk about this so soon?” Luka asks the question gently.

“Even though we’re having this celebration, sooner or later we’ve got to decide what we’re doing next.” Sergio points out. “We might as well discuss it now.”

“If there’s even the slightest chance Kun is there, then I need to go,” Leo urges.

“Hang on – what exactly did this gang know about the islands?” Masche asks.

“This one guy told me doctors were working over there to find a cure. He said that only medical professionals, scientists, rich people and celebrities were allowed in.” The disapproval is evident on Sergio’s face. “That’s why they kidnapped me, they wanted to use us to help them get to safety.”

“So they’re just turning people away? That’s disgusting.” James’s face turns pale.

“Yes, but under these circumstances it’s survival of the fittest.” Cristiano rests a hand on James’s shoulder. “Don’t you want to be safe, my love?”

“I just want to be wherever you are,” James replies.

Geri is sure he sees Gareth roll his eyes from across the table.

“Isn’t anyone the least bit sceptical?” Rafa speaks up, sounding like a man older than his years. “It sounds too good to be true. Those islands are practically right under our noses yet we’ve barely been scraping by for the past two months. Surely someone would have tried to rescue us.”

“It’s the only decent lead we’ve had,” Geri says reluctantly. “The islands are so close that we pretty much have to check them out.”

“Well, we fit the criteria for getting in,” Sergio snaps bitterly.

“If Leo’s going, then I go.” Masche nods decisively.

“I’m not going. Absolutely not.” Gareth shakes his head.

Cristiano turns to look at him, his jaw open in horror. “Gareth, why would you say such a thing? You have to come. We’re all going together as a group.”

“Exactly, we’ve only just found each other again. I think us splitting up is a mistake,” Masche points out. “Jesus – this was meant to be a celebration, not us deciding to go our separate ways.”

“They’re adults. Let them make up their own minds,” Sergio retorts. “I’m not forcing anyone to go there, not after what I’ve seen.”

“You don’t want to go?” Geri’s voice is shaky.

“I’m going because I know you’re going,” Sergio declares. “And when I get there, I’m going to give the people that run the place a piece of my mind.”

“How are you even going to get there?” Rafa asks.

“The gang had a boat.” Sergio sighs. “It’s not as if they’ll be needing it now.”

“I don’t want to go either,” Luka speaks softly. “I’m going to stay here with Gareth, and keep the house running if Masche will let us. If you’re successful, you can always come back for us. Or if it goes wrong, you know you can return here and it’ll be safe.”

“We… Rafa and me, that is, we want to stay here with Luka and Gareth too.” Neymar looks around the table nervously. Rafa nods in solidarity.

“I’m not happy about this… I’m not happy at all.” Geri sighs.

“I wish there was a way for us to stay in touch,” Masche ponders. “Not being able to get hold of you worries me.”

Sergio makes a low noise that Geri interprets as dark laughter. “The gang had radios. I guess we can steal those too.”

“Radios would work,” Luka says timidly.

“Then it’s decided,” Sergio states.

“I can’t believe this is happening.” Geri’s heart thumps in his chest. “I can’t believe we are seriously deciding to split up as a group.”

The joy of the celebration dinner has evaporated.

“Sergio,” Cristiano asks hesitantly. “Are you sure you’re alright? Are you really well enough to do this?”

“Tough times build tough people,” Sergio says lowly, draining the last of the wine out of his glass.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A week of bad migraine means I haven't had the chance to get this chapter beta read... I apologise for any mistakes I've missed!


	13. Los Secretos (Secrets)

Geri wakes with the distinct feeling that something is wrong. It doesn’t help when he turns over to find an empty space in the bed next to him. As his long fingers trace the space where Sergio’s body should be, the unsettling sensation rises in his stomach. It’s the beginning of what’s going to be a very long day.

Still half asleep, he walks across to the bathroom.

“Neymar, are you going to be much longer?” Leo’s voice is strained, and an equally displeased Rafa stands next to him.

“There’s a queue for the bathroom, seriously?” Geri asks in disbelief.

“It looks that way, doesn’t it?” Leo snaps back. “If he doesn’t open the door soon, I swear I’m going to wet myself!”

“Neymar, are you alright in there?” Geri presses his ear to the door, and is met with the sound of Neymar singing loudly. “I guess he’s excited about the hot water and being able to use a proper bathroom again.” Geri shrugs, turning to face the others.

“There was never a queue when it was just four of us.” Rafa shakes his head, feet dancing on the spot where he stands. “Masche may have a big house, but it isn’t big enough for the ten of us.”

“You’re telling me,” Leo grunts. “Luka’s snoring kept me awake last night!”

“At least we’re all together,” Geri says sadly. “And we won’t be for much longer.”

He walks away, deciding to leave Leo and Rafa to their argument with Neymar. As he creeps down the stairs, he hears more voices.

“Basically, we’re fucked whatever we decide to do.” Sergio spits the words out venomously, as he furiously searches one of the boxes of ammo the group brought in yesterday from the bus. “We’ve used too many bullets and we’ve eaten too much food, so we can’t stay holed up in this house pretending everything is going to be fine, because it isn’t.”

“Then we’ll start preparing for the journey to the islands today,” Masche states, his hands on his hips. “It’s what most of us want to do, anyway.”

“Nobody here knows how to drive a fucking boat.” Sergio throws one of the guns down angrily. “I mean we’re footballers, right? We know how to lie on yachts looking pretty during our vacations, but we don’t know how to do much else.”

Luka is standing beside him, concern etched on his tired face.

“I just don’t see why you all need to go to the islands _right now_ ,” Luka stresses. “You’re extremely underprepared. We need to exercise caution – the outside world, well, it’s more dangerous than a war zone.”

His strong words make Geri wince. He stands the other side of Sergio, delicately brushing his shoulder with his fingertips as a way of making a morning greeting. Sergio briefly tilts his head towards him, but he doesn’t smile.

“Do any of us really know the truth about what’s out there now?” Geri asks softly. “It’s been so long since communications shut down.”

“Somebody would come and look for us, if it was at all possible,” Luka points out. “I’m convinced of that. Our friends and our loved ones wouldn’t just abandon us.”

“The gang were positive the island refuge existed,” Sergio recalls. “And I believe them – I believe there are people out there who haven’t suffered half as much as we have. They’ve had it easy all along.”

“And Kun called me in the beginning, saying he was going to a safe island,” Masche adds. “It’s too much of a coincidence. We can’t just let this lead slip away through our fingers, because it’s the only one we’ve got.”

“I’ve lived through dark circumstances before.” Luka’s voice is so quiet it’s barely audible. “And I’m telling you, by sailing onto the sea and abandoning this safe place – you’re making a huge mistake.”

The hairs on the back of Geri’s neck stand up. He is aware of what Luka’s alluding to, and he feels a silent, new found, respect for him.

“There’s no such thing as a safe place anymore.” Masche shakes his head.  
  
“Looks to me as though you were all doing fine here before we arrived,” Sergio observes.

“We were on the verge of starvation.” Masche hangs his head sadly, and Geri can sense shame in his voice. “It was too dangerous for us to go out for supplies, so we just stayed in the house, and hoped for the best.”

“It’s still too dangerous to go out for supplies, really” Geri chips in. “The numbers of zombies here in the city are far greater than anything we ever saw in the countryside.”

“Please stop calling them zombies,” Luka complains. “Officially, they referred to as the infected.”

“It’s not as though anybody’s around to enforce official terminology on us anymore, is it?” Geri rolls his eyes.

“No, but the word ‘zombie’ makes the infected sound like characters from a bad horror movie.” Luka sighs. “It trivialises the situation.”

“Believe me, I’m not trivialising anything.” Geri raises his voice. “I’m as sick of this as the rest of you are.”

“Oh God, this is just like back at the cabin.” Neymar walks down the stairs, ruffling his freshly washed hair with his hands. “Every single day we’d wake up to an argument. A guy can’t even take a bath in peace.”

“We’re not having an argument, we’re having a _discussion_.” Sergio corrects him.

“About what we should do next,” Masche continues.

“Then shouldn’t we all be discussing it together?” Neymar asks. “Can’t we wait until everybody else is here?”

“Maybe we’d all be here if we weren’t all queueing up to use the bathroom instead.” Leo plods down the stairs, his discontent evident. “I’m sorry, Masche, but with the ten of us being here right now, this place is way too cramped.”

“None of you realise how lucky you are to be here!” Luka’s face reddens. “You’re all spoilt, every single one of you. It’s disgusting.”

“Well, Leo could open his house up to the group if he wanted to.” Sergio shrugs. “It’s only next door.”

“Leave Leo out of this,” Masche snaps back defensively.

“I don’t think I like your tone.” Sergio narrows his eyes.

“Stop it!” Neymar yells. “Just be quiet, all of you! None of this is getting us anywhere.”  
  
”Neymar’s right,” Sergio says quietly. “Somebody here has to take charge,” he continues. “And that somebody is me. I’ve always seen myself as the group’s leader.”

Geri feels a small stab in his chest. However much things change, they also seem to stay the same. This reminds him of when Sergio was second-guessing every decision he made for the group back at the cabin. Oddly enough, it still hurts. Every time Sergio challenged him, Geri took it personally. He can’t believe that just a day after being rescued, Sergio is ready to throw his weight around again.

“Oh, so you’re our leader now?” Masche puts his hands on his hips, his face reddening. Geri’s seen Masche like this before, and he knows only too well he’s prone to exploding into a temper tantrum. This is a line Sergio should not be crossing, especially not this early in the morning.

“Sergio…” Luka sighs. “Don’t provoke him, please.”

“I’m not scared of Masche,” Sergio laughs darkly.

Geri tenses as he sees Leo readying his arms to hold Masche back.

“What the hell’s going on?” Gareth heads down the stairs, and Rafa is only a few feet behind him. “What’s all the bloody noise about?”

“They’re having an argument about what we should do next.” The smallest of smiles tugs at the corners of Neymar’s lips. “And over who’s our leader.”

“Neymar, this isn’t funny,” Geri says lowly, still looking between Masche and Sergio, worried a fight will break out between them imminently.

“Not again.” Gareth sighs. “Can’t we at least take this into the kitchen, so we can all have some breakfast?”

“That’s the best idea I’ve heard all morning.” Luka sighs in relief.

* * *

Ten minutes later, Geri and Masche have prepared ten portions of canned fruit for everybody’s breakfast. The overall mood hasn’t lightened much – but at least Sergio and Masche haven’t come to blows, for now.

“Shouldn’t we wait for Cristiano and James?” Luka asks before slipping a slice of peach into his mouth.

“Leave them to it.” Sergio smirks. “It’s not as if we don’t know what they’re up to.”

Almost as if on cue, Geri sees Gareth recoil in horror.

“At least you and Sergio have some degree of self-control.” Masche directs the remark to Geri.

“Oh, trust me, they’re bad enough at times.” Leo rolls his eyes. “They made life back at the cabin difficult for all of us. One minute Geri was punching Sergio in the face, the next they were fucking each other.”

Laughter rings out around the table for the first time that morning.

“Oh please, you’re just jealous.” Sergio waves a hand dismissively. “Nobody here has a relationship as passionate as mine and Geri’s.”

Neymar makes a gagging noise, as if he’s going to be sick. Rafa and Gareth snort with laughter.

“Can we just be serious for a moment?” Luka stops eating, and glares at the others. “I just feel bad about us making vital decisions without everyone being present,” he confesses. “We should all be doing this together. Even if we do decide to split up as a group, we all need to be transparent with one another. There can’t be any secrets.”

Geri and Leo exchange a look. There are some secrets, Geri knows, that don’t yet need to be told.

“If it makes you feel any better, there’s not much that _is_ up for discussion,” Sergio points out.

“What do you mean?” Rafa asks.

“Well, we’ll need to go out for food and weapons regardless of whether some of us go to the islands,” Sergio states. “Otherwise, none of us will make it anyway.”

“If we’re to fully prepare for the journey to the Balearics, then will need to go back to the gang’s stronghold too,” Masche interjects.

“But it’s completely overrun,” Leo says with wide eyes. “We’re the ones who sent most of the zombies in there. The entire area is a death trap.”

Geri is sure he sees Sergio flinch.

“It’s the only place you’ll get a boat from,” Gareth adds reluctantly.

“And radios, too.” Luka butts in. “We really need them.”

“I don’t think Sergio is ready to go back there just yet,” Geri whispers. In fact, he’s _knows_ Sergio isn’t ready to go back there yet, even though he’ll deny it until he’s blue in the face.

“I’m the only one who can do this,” Sergio replies dismissively. “I know where they keep everything, remember?”

“All of this is so messed up.” Neymar breathes deeply.

“But it must be done,” Masche says decisively.

For a moment it’s so silent Geri can hear the wind blowing outside. It’s as though the enormity of the tasks that lie ahead of the group are finally starting to sink in, and nobody truly knows how to handle it.

“I don’t know what we’re going to do.” Luka sighs, his brow furrowed in worry. “The odds are stacked up against us.”

“The odds have been stacked up against us since the very first night the outbreak happened,” Sergio reminds everyone. “Things are only getting harder out there.”

Geri closes his eyes, wishing he could shut out the world. It pains him to hear Sergio speaking so pessimistically.

“Anyway…” Sergio exhales deeply and loudly. “We’ll get started today. That’s what’s going to be best for everyone, rather than us sitting around here and worrying.”

“You’re probably right,” Gareth concedes. “Where are we going to go first?”

“We should probably head out to a quiet suburb to begin with. It’s about time we ditched the bus with its bullet holes and its flattened tyres. A couple of minibuses would serve us better. The priority is to get more food and weapons. Going back to where the gang were can wait until we’re closer to wanting to journey to the islands.” Sergio only stops to take a breath when he’s finished delivering his speech.

“You seem to have got all of this figured out.” Masche folds his hands together. His tone isn’t without bitterness. Geri senses that more conflict between him and Sergio lies ahead.

“We should set off fairly soon,” Leo states. “That way, we can avoid being out after nightfall.”

Geri hears soft footsteps behind him. He turns around, and sees Cristiano walking into the room. His face is as pale as a sheet, and Geri thinks he looks older somehow, as though he’s carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.

“There you are,” Neymar calls over to him. “Tell James if he isn’t down here in another ten minutes, I’m going to eat his breakfast.”

Cristiano opens his mouth to speak, but no words come out.

“Cris, are you okay?” Gareth asks the question hesitantly, his blue eyes sparkling as he looks at the man who he’s so obviously in love with.

“I…” Cristiano stutters. “Gareth, I need to talk to you and Geri for a minute. Can you come upstairs with me?”

“Okay, I suppose so.” Geri shrugs, unsure as to what the latest of Cristiano’s dramas may be.

Gareth gets to his feet silently, putting his hands into his pockets. There’s a reluctance in the way he moves, but he cannot deny Cristiano anything, either.

“Don’t be long,” Sergio calls after them. “The rest of us will start preparing for the supply run.”  


* * *

Cristiano stops at the top of the stairs, just outside the door of the room he and James are sharing.

“Gareth, I need to ask you something.” Cristiano’s eyes glint with emotion as he looks across at him.

Geri doesn’t really understand why he’s here and being made to be a part of whatever it is that is going on. Things between Cristiano and Gareth are awkward, to say the least.

“Sure,” Gareth replies hesitantly.

“You’ve not been feeling ill have you?” Cristiano asks. “You know, since we kissed each other.”

Gareth’s cheeks burn with red. “No.” He shakes his head.

“Are you sure?” Cristiano presses. “You’ve not had a headache, fever, or anything else like that?”

“No, not at all.” Gareth’s voice is firmer this time.

Geri’s body tenses, and he folds his arms. He hates feeling as though he’s intruding on a private moment, but at the same time, he senses something very, very bad has happened.

“Cris, what’s going on?” Geri doesn’t ask the question unkindly, but with urgency. “What aren’t you telling us?”

Gareth swallows hard, and takes an audible breath. “Cris… where’s James? Why didn’t you two join us for breakfast?”

Geri’s mouth suddenly feels dry. “Oh my God,” he whispers. “Cris, what’s happened to him?”

Wordlessly, Cristiano turns the bedroom door handle. He walks inside first, and the other two follow him slowly. Geri knows whatever he’s about to see isn’t good.

James lies on the bed, moaning in pain. His head is coated in sweat, and his body shakes with shivers.

“What’s happened to him?” Gareth’s voice is manic. “What did you do to him?”

“We had sex.” Cristiano lets out a large sob, before falling to the floor. “We had sex last night, and now he’s like this.”

Gareth and Geri look at each other, neither one of them knowing what to do.

“Maybe I’m not immune to the virus,” Cristiano barks out the words between cries. “Maybe I’ve just been a carrier all along.”

James keels over to one side, and throws up on the floor.

“I’ve infected him,” Cristiano cries. “And soon, he’s going to turn into one of those things because of me!”


	14. James

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to say a massive thank you for all the support I've had with this story so far. Your reactions to the twist at the end of chapter 13 completely blew my mind. I'm going to try my best to keep updating as regularly as possible, but the next chapter might be later than my usual fortnightly posting. Unfortunately, work is really kicking my arse right now and I'm also trying to write something for a fic exchange which obviously has a deadline. I'm sorry to keep those of you who are following this so closely waiting, especially at such a pivotal moment of the story. I will update just as soon as I can. Thanks again for being so awesome!!

“No way.” Geri shakes his head. “He hasn’t got the zombie virus, it’s impossible.”

Geri approaches the bed, putting a hand out to touch James’s forehead.

“Don’t do that!” Gareth grabs Geri’s hand before it touches James’s body. “You could get sick too.”

“Stop being so dramatic,” Geri scolds him. “That isn’t how this infection works. It’s transmitted through bites.”

“Cris, did you bite him?” Gareth asks.

“Of course I didn’t, you idiot!” Cris fires back angrily. “I asked both of you here to help me, not to make fun of the situation.”

“I’m not making fun of anything.” Gareth sighs tiredly.

Geri reaches across and touches James’s head with the back of his hand. It’s hot and clammy – James certainly has a nasty fever. Geri swallows hard. Perhaps he’s been in denial. James’s symptoms seem ominous, particularly as they’ve seemingly come out of nowhere.

“How are you doing, mate?” He asks gently, stroking James’s hair. He tries to speak as though nothing is amiss. “Can you tell me how you feel?”

“Sick,” James groans. “It’s my stomach, it’s cramping up. And I’m so hot.”

“Don’t worry,” Geri says reassuringly. “We’ll look after you, and we’ll do everything we can to have you feeling better in no time.”

“How long has he been like this?” Gareth looks over at Cristiano.

“It seemed to happen very quickly,” Cristiano admits. “One minute he was fine, the next…”

“I don’t understand,” James mutters. “Why are you making all of this fuss? Why is Cris panicking so much? It’s scaring me."

The other three men exchange glances. From the look on Cristiano’s face, Geri knows he hasn’t told James about his apparent immunity to the virus. It’s yet another secret that’s tearing the group apart, but it isn’t for Geri to divulge this revelation.

“I’m just worried about you, my love,” Cristiano whispers. “I don’t like seeing you like this.”

“I’m not really enjoying it myself.” James winces.

“What are we going to do?” Gareth scratches his head. “Should I go and fetch one of the others?”

“No!” Cristiano runs up to the door, barricading himself against it. “I won’t have them knowing about this!”

“I don’t think this is something we can hide from them,” Geri points out. “We don’t have any time to waste. James needs some treatment today – preferably within the next hour or two.”

“You think it’s that serious?” Gareth’s eyes are wide with alarm.

“At this point, I really don’t know.” Geri shrugs. “But I’m not prepared to risk it, we need to do everything we can to help him.”

“It could just be flu.” Gareth paces the room.

“But you don’t know that for certain,” Cristiano corrects him. “Look at how quickly he got like this. The infection can do that – people can deteriorate rapidly.”

“It’s not like that with everybody,” Gareth responds. “Masche and Luka told us it can take up to 24 hours for people to become zombies, remember?”

“That’s not very reassuring,” Cristiano complains.

“Someone’s going to have to watch him for the next few hours," Gareth concedes with a sigh. “The rest of us will have to go out to get some antibiotics or something.”

“What do you think is going to happen to me?” James’s face seems to freeze with alarm. “Do you think I – oh my God.” He sinks back onto the bed.

“Now don’t be frightened, my love.” Cristiano attempts to speak tenderly.

James tries to sit himself up, but he starts to shake in panic. “You think I have the virus! You think I’m going to turn!” His breaths start to come quickly and raggedly.

“Nobody said anything about you turning,” Geri replies with a surprising calmness given his internal panic. “We aren’t giving up on you. We’ll help you.”

“But the three of you clearly have reason to believe I’m in danger,” James gasps. “Why? I haven’t even come into contact with one of the infected.”

Gareth hangs his head down. Geri says nothing, turning to look at Cristiano. This, he knows, is something Cris must tell James himself.

“That’s not entirely true.” Cristiano closes his eyes, a single tear falling down his cheek.

James pulls the bed cover back, revealing his arms and legs. “Where’s the bite on my body then?” He demands to know. “You’re all being ludicrous, because there isn’t one!”

“Perhaps there doesn’t need to be a visible bite,” Cristiano weeps. “Maybe the infection can be spread in other ways.”

James turns towards him, his mouth dropping. “You?” He points to Cristiano. “No. It’s not possible, you’d be dead.”

“I… was bitten.” Cristiano shudders at the painful memory. “It happened the night we were separated at Camp Nou. My wound took weeks to heal, but I never developed the virus. Perhaps I suffered from a weakened version of it.”

If it’s at all possible, Geri is sure James turns even paler.

“And Geri and Gareth knew, yet you didn’t tell me?” James’s bottom lip quivers. “Why did you lie to me?”

“I didn’t lie to you.” Cristiano’s denial is firm. “I just didn’t think it needed to be mentioned yet.”

“You didn’t think it was too big a thing to omit?” James asks, open mouthed. “Jesus Christ.”

“He had his reasons for not telling you about his immunity,” Gareth says defensively. “It could put him in great danger, especially if you sail to the islands.”

Geri wonders how even now, after all the drama Cristiano has caused, Gareth can remain so loyal to him.

“Stop it,” James snaps. “Your crush on my boyfriend is pathetic.”

“He didn’t seem to think so the other day when we were kissing.” Gareth raises his voice. James glares at him, dumbfounded.

“Gareth, now is _not_ the time for this,” Geri stresses. “James is ill.”

“You kissed him?” James turns to Cristiano. “Please tell me this isn’t true.”

“I can’t do that.” Cristiano shakes his head. “I’m so sorry James.”

“This just gets worse.” James starts to make reaching noises again. “I feel so sick.”

“James, please…” Cris whispers.

“Tell me it meant nothing to you,” James gasps. “Tell me kissing Gareth was just a stupid mistake. That you only did it because you thought you were never going to see me again.”

Gareth backs away towards the door, eyes flashing with hurt. It’s as though he’s resigned to the fact Cristiano is going to publicly reject him.

“I’m not sure what it meant,” Cristiano replies shakily. “Gareth took care of me while we were in the cabin. He protected me, and we became close. The truth is that I probably don’t deserve either of you.”

Gareth starts to tremble. He looks right at Cristiano with his piercing blue eyes, the corners of them prickling with tears.

“I…” Gareth stutters. “I think we should concentrate on getting James some antibiotics now. They believe the right ones could slow down the virus, don’t they? It’s the only way I can think of us being able to help him.”

“I agree,” Geri says quietly. “We need to get moving. Now.”

“Isn’t there anything else we can do?” Cristiano pleads.

“Short of us finding a doctor, no.” Geri stares down at the floor.

“We could check the hospitals,” Gareth suggests. “Maybe somebody is still there, helping survivors.”

“We don’t have the luxury of time, you fool!” Cristiano’s eyes fill with tears again.

“We’ll split into two groups.” Geri decides. “One group will go to the nearest pharmacy to find antibiotics, and the others will go to check the hospitals.”

“It’s too dangerous.” James shakes his head.

“We have to try,” Gareth replies.

“I want you to stay with me, Geri,” James says pleadingly. “I don’t trust either of the others.”

“I wish I could do that, but I can’t.” Geri declines. “I’ve been on several supply runs now, and the group will need my experience.”

“I’ll stay with James,” Cristiano declares. “You and Gareth go back downstairs.”

“You know we have to tell the others about this immediately.” Geri frowns.

Cristiano nods in silence.

“What if he turns?” Gareth asks hesitantly, lingering by the door. “You’d be stuck here with him, all on your own.”

“He’s already been bitten once, remember?” James replies bitterly. “I doubt I can hurt him – definitely not as much as he’s already hurt me.”

Gareth and Geri take that as their cue to leave.

* * *

For the second time that morning, Geri heads down the stairs with a very bad feeling. He hears Gareth’s footsteps as he plods closely behind him.

“Where is everyone?” Geri fires the question at Neymar, who is washing dishes with Rafa in the kitchen.

“They’re fixing the bus up so we can head out,” Neymar replies.

“I need you both to come outside, there’s been a change of plan.” Geri sighs heavily.

“What’s going on?” Rafa’s voice is shaky, as though he anticipates the bad news.

Geri doesn’t answer him, he’s already moving towards the front door with a furious urgency.

“Okay, everybody gather round.” He claps his hands authoritatively.

“I’m kind of in the middle of blowing this tyre up.” Luka looks up from the side of the bus.

Leo, Masche and Sergio emerge from inside the vehicle.

“She still goes.” Sergio smirks. “Not even the gang’s bullets could stop her.” When he sees Geri’s worried face his smile instantly melts away.

“Guys, I don’t know how to say this, but James isn’t well.” Geri begins.

“Please tell me it’s not flu.” Luka grimaces. “If it is, we’ll all end up getting it one by one. Things could get even uglier around here.”

“We’re worried it could be something worse,” Gareth chips in.

“Oh no…” Sergio’s jaw drops as realisation hits him.

Luka drops his tools and gets to his feet. “What do you mean, something worse?”

“It could be the virus.” Leo sighs.

“What?” Masche is horrified. “When did he get bitten?”

“He didn’t,” Leo replies quietly. “But Cristiano did, months back at Camp Nou.”

“He had this wound when I found him,” Geri interjects. “But at no point did I believe it was a bite. Not until Leo worked it out.”

“He confessed everything, and he was really sorry,” Gareth says pleadingly. “We all thought he must be immune to the virus. We were worried about the authorities finding him and experimenting on him, so we decided to protect him.”

“So much for no more secrets.” Luka shakes his head in disappointment. “You didn’t think this was something the rest of us needed to know about?”

“We promised him we wouldn’t tell _anyone_ about it,” Geri replies. “We felt like it was his secret to tell.”

“This insane. This is ridiculous.” Masche turns the brightest shade of red, gritting his teeth in anger. “I want him out of my house, _now_.”

“Don’t be so fucking cold,” Gareth snaps in response.

“Look, we can deal with Cristiano later,” Geri says darkly. “Right now, James needs our help.”

“You truly believe Cristiano has given him the virus?” Neymar asks.

“We believe it’s a possibility, yes.” Geri nods his head. “He could have contracted some version of it.”

“He’s certainly very sick.” Gareth speaks with utter sadness. “We don’t have any time to waste, we need to try and do something right away.”

“What can we do?” Masche knows his hands up in the air dramatically. “The whole world has succumbed to this virus – I doubt us being able to beat it. If he’s swapped bodily fluids with someone who has the infection, then it’s a fucking death sentence. He has hours to live, if that.”

“Please don’t say that.” Rafa closes his eyes, tears forming at the corners of them. “He’s our friend and he’s become our brother over the weeks and months we’ve spent here together. We have to help him, Masche.”

“Some of us must go to the nearest pharmacy to get him antibiotics,” Geri interjects. “The rest of us are going to have to search the city’s hospitals, to see if we can find anyone who can take a look at him.”

“There’s no one left,” Luka says bitterly. “I’m convinced of it.”

“But we have to try,” Gareth urges. “We owe it to him. There must be someone who knows something about the virus somewhere.”

“This could wind up being the most dangerous thing we’ve ever done.” Sergio sighs. “Searching the hospitals is an absolute shot in the dark.”

“Do you have any other suggestions?” Geri asks.

“No,” Sergio answers reluctantly.

“Is Cristiano with him now?” Neymar chips in.

“Yes,” Geri responds. “He refused to leave his side.”

“We can’t leave him here alone with James, even if he is immune to the virus,” Sergio states. “He only escaped after being bitten last time because he got through a window.”

“I found him,” Geri recalls. “In a one-on-one situation, I wouldn’t like his chances against James if he turned.”

“Two people need to stay behind to keep watch over the house as it is.” Masche adds.

“Ney and I can do that.” Rafa volunteers. “We can look out for Cristiano too.”

“Thank you. That’s good.” Geri nods his head. “So what are the rest of us doing?”

“Gareth – you take Leo and Masche to the pharmacy,” Sergio instructs. “Luka, Geri and I will tackle the hospitals.”

“Anyone would think you’re trying to avoid working with me.” Masche rolls his eyes at Sergio sarcastically.

“You wish I paid you that much attention, sweetheart.” Sergio glares.

“For crying out loud, stop this!” Luka raises his voice.

“We need to get a move on, guys,” Geri insists. “Leo, how far is it to the nearest pharmacy?”

“There’s one literally five minutes down the road,” he recalls.

“Then it shouldn’t take you long,” Geri says with a sigh of relief. “You’ll be back way before we are.”

“Be careful,” Sergio urges. “You stay close to each other at all times. Don’t hesitate to use one of the weapons if you need to.”

Gareth and Masche nod solemnly.

Leo swallows hard. “We’ll do what we can for James,” he says quietly.

“What’s your plan when it comes to the hospitals?” Luka enquires.

“I guess…” Geri begins. “We’ll have to figure that out when we get there.”

Geri swallows the lump in his throat. Truthfully, he’s never been more unsure about anything.


	15. La Farmacia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! Sorry for the extra long time between updates. I'm hoping to get back on track with posting every 2-3 weeks again now. This chapter is from Gareth's perspective... apologies for the lack of Serard, but there's a lot more to come from them.

Gareth feels dreadfully unsettled as he finds himself stuck in a car with Masche and Leo on the way to the pharmacy. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with them – they’re nice blokes, he knows that. But he isn’t particularly friendly with either of the two men.

Masche is in the driving seat, with Leo by his side. It dawns on Gareth that he has no idea of exactly where they’re taking him. He doesn’t know whether the pharmacy is big or small, whether it’s already been overrun or ransacked. After all, Gareth has the most experience when it comes to fighting the zombies. He’s only seen Leo do it a couple of times, and though he’s a maestro on the football pitch, there’s a lot left to be desired when he tries to take on the undead. Masche is an unknown quantity. Gareth has seen snippets of his fiery temper, and it concerns him. It won’t do any of them well if Masche goes rushing in all guns blazing. They won’t make it out alive.

“I meant every word of what I said,” Masche says, his fingers gripping the steering wheel so tightly that Gareth can see the whites of his knuckles. “I want James and Cristiano out of my house.”

“Will it really matter?” Leo asks him. “In a few days, we’ll be gone. I’m not prepared to wait much longer to reunite with Kun.”

“We might have to go sooner,” Masche replies. “The odds are that James will have already turned by the time we get back.”

Gareth’s blood runs cold. There are some parts of their conversation he’s struggled to understand, but this bit is crystal clear. His mind constantly wanders back to the image of poor James lying sick in bed, with a worried Cristiano by his side. He knows, as twisted as it may seem, he will never forgive himself if James doesn’t make it.

As Masche turns the car around the last corner of the residential area, he slams his foot on the brake. The road is full of zombies.

“Oh no.” Leo puts his head in his hands.

“What are we going to do?” Masche turns around and looks at Gareth.

“How far away are we from the pharmacy?” Gareth asks.

“It’s literally a couple of blocks away,” Masche replies. “But there’s no chance of us reaching it safely, not with this amount of the infected on the loose.”

“We have to go back.” There’s a desperation in Leo’s eyes.

“No, absolutely not.” Gareth shakes his head. “We need to do this.”

“But it’s pointless!” Masche throws his hands up in the air. “We can’t do anything to help James.”

“That’s not what Geri and Sergio thought,” Gareth replies. “Otherwise they wouldn’t be scouring the hospitals right now.”

“It was their choice to go to the hospitals.” Masche corrects him. “We’ll be lucky if we ever see them again. They shouldn’t have thrown their lives away over this!”

“Please don’t say that,” Leo whispers. “Don’t act like there’s no hope at all, Masche.”

But Masche doesn’t get chance to reply, because the zombies in the road have spotted them.

“Drive!” Gareth yells. “Just put your foot down!”

It feels like déjà vu. Ever since the apocalypse happened, the group have been running away from something. Gareth is beginning to get sick of it.

Masche floors the accelerator pedal, and they soar past the first group of zombies swiftly. He ducks and weaves from street to street, causing Gareth’s stomach to lurch. When the vehicle finally comes to a stop, Gareth thinks he might throw up.

“Bloody hell, you don’t mess about, do you?” Gareth tries to catch his breath.

“Please tell me how you would have handled it better?” Masche sighs, resting his head on the steering wheel.

Suddenly Gareth misses Geri and Sergio more than he already did.

“Right,” Leo says, breaking the silence. “Okay. Here we are.”

Gareth hasn’t even had chance to take in his surroundings. He glances out of the window, relieved to see a sign that reads ‘La Farmacia’.

“All of the drugs will be kept under lock and key.” He thinks out loud. “That’s what it was like at the last pharmacy, the one where we nearly lost Geri.”

Leo turns around and looks at him. “So, you’re saying this probably won’t be an easy raid.”

“Is anything ever easy anymore?” Masche asks, a wry grin spreading across his face.

Wordlessly, Gareth offers each of them an axe, to complement the guns he knows they’re already carrying in their pockets.

“We try and do this without making any noise,” Leo says. “We’ll go in there, we’ll find out where the drugs are kept, we’ll get what we need and we’ll head straight home.”

“You make it sound so simple,” Masche replies.

“Be on your guard,” Gareth says as he opens the car door. “It’s very unlikely that we’re going to be alone in there.”

The air is oppressive as he steps outside, as though it’s too hot to breathe in. He’s unsteady on his legs as he put his weight onto them. Anxiety, he knows, can manifest itself in many ways. Perhaps the stress of this situation is simply too much for him. It doesn’t help that his two companions are so reluctant to be here in the first place.

“Oh no.” Leo points to the door. It’s been boarded up with wood. “We’re going to have to break in there.”

“No.” Gareth shakes his head. “Let’s check around the back. There might be another way in.”

The three men form a line, and creep around the side of the building.

“Great.” Masche rolls his eyes for what feels like the hundredth time that day. “There’s a fence.”

“Oh – I’ll just make a hole in it.” Leo shrugs as though the task doesn’t faze him at all, and Masche and Gareth exchange a look.

They watch on as Leo uses his axe to cut through the wooden fencing panel. Unease rises in Gareth’s stomach. There’s something about watching Leo do this that’s quite sinister. He can’t pinpoint what it is exactly.

Leo sticks his head through the hole he’s made cautiously. “I can’t see any zombies,” he says.

“That’s good, isn’t it?” Masche asks Gareth.

“I don’t know.” He shakes his head. “Somebody took the trouble to secure this place. They might still be inside – living or dead.”

“Then we’ll have to be careful, won’t we?” Masche replies.

But it’s too late to hesitate, because Leo is already pushing himself through the gap in the fence. Masche shrugs and turns to follow him, easily making his way through the hole. When Gareth tries to get through, he gets stuck almost immediately. Splinters of wood stick to his sides, poking through his shirt.

“Hey!” He shouts, floundering his limbs about clumsily. “Could I get a little help over here?”

Simultaneously, Masche and Leo collapse into fits of laughter.

“It isn’t funny!” Gareth can feel his face turning red. “I’m much bigger and taller than both of you are.”

“What do you think, Masche?” Leo asks. “Is he making fun of us for being short?”

“It sounds that way to me.” Masche smirks.

“That isn’t a very pleasant thing to do.” Leo shakes his head.

“Come on, guys.” Gareth can feel his frustration building. “Just help me get through, please. This is really uncomfortable.”

Both Argentines are still grinning from ear to ear as they casually approach him. Gareth breathes a sigh of relief – in just a few seconds, he’ll be free.

That’s when he hears the noise from behind him. The unmistakable growling and gurgling that only a zombie can make.

Masche and Leo freeze on the spot.

“Where’s it coming from?” Leo asks, eyes wide in panic.

“I think it’s behind me.” Gareth’s heart thuds in his chest. This isn’t good. It isn’t good at all.

Masche grabs his arms and starts pulling as hard as he can. “Don’t worry, we’ll get you in here with us,” he says, a look of determination in his eyes. “You’re going to be fine, Gareth.”

For a moment Leo hesitates, unsure as to what he should do. He grabs the axe, and starts hacking at the bits of fence that are closest to Gareth.

“It’s not working!” Gareth squirms, desperately trying to free himself. The noise is getting louder now, and Gareth knows the zombie is very close. He expects it to sink its teeth into his leg at any given second.

He closes his eyes. This is it. He’s fought so hard for so long, and all of it for nothing.

“I’ve got you.” Masche’s voice cuts through the air.

The fencing surrounding him gives way under Leo’s axe, and Masche pulls him to safety. Gareth can hardly believe that someone has saved him from near death yet again.

He doesn’t get chance to digest what’s just happened, because the zombie is poking its head through the hole that trapped him mere seconds ago.

“Fuck off!” Leo yells, sinking his axe into the creature’s skull. “Just die already.”

“Leo!” Masche stares at him in amazement. “And they say I’m the one with anger issues.”

Gareth’s lips start to curl into a smile.

“Leo, you just killed a person,” Masche says, sweat forming on his brow.

“Whatever that was, it wasn’t a person anymore.” Leo shakes his head, wiping the bloody axe on the grass. “I was doing them a favour, I was putting them out of their misery.”

“Even now, I still can’t see it like that,” Masche replies. His eyes shine with tears.

“None of us want to kill them,” Gareth says softly. “But we have to do whatever it takes to survive.”

“I’ll do whatever it takes to get back to Kun,” Leo whispers. He sinks to the ground, and Gareth notices that he too is sweating. Except Leo is drenched in sweat, the damp spots are evident on his sweater.

“Are you okay, Leo?” Gareth asks.

Leo takes several deep breaths, before vomiting on the ground.

“Oh no.” Masche walks over to him, his face etched with concern. “Does killing the infected normally have this effect on you?”

“No.” He shakes his head. “I’m not squeamish.”

Gareth closes his eyes. “He looks a lot like how James looked this morning.” Somehow making the confession out loud riddles him with guilt.

Masche places his hand on Leo’s forehead. “He’s burning up,” he says.

“You haven’t…” Gareth can hardly believe he’s about to ask the question. “You haven’t been with Cristiano?”

“Of course I haven’t! I’m loyal to Kun.” Leo looks every bit as insulted as Gareth imagined he would do.

“I told you this was ridiculous.” Masche throws his hands up into the air.

“I feel like I’m getting flu,” Leo says.

“That’s because you _do_ have the flu,” Masche replies. “Just like James does.”

“We don’t know that for sure.” Gareth’s mouth is dry as he talks. “It could just be a coincidence.”

“There’s no such thing as coincidence.” Masche’s voice is raised. “Thanks to James and Cristiano, we’ve sent Geri, Sergio, and Luka to their deaths. You know that, right? They’ll probably not make it back. It’s far too dangerous out there.”

“They’ll make it back,” Gareth replies. “I believe in them. They’ll find help and they’ll make it back.”

“I don’t want to lose Geri,” Leo says weakly. “I’ve known him since I was a teenager.”

“Try not to worry about that now,” Masche replies kindly. “We’ll raid the pharmacy and then we’ll get you back home.”

At least Masche is still prepared to go in there. Gareth isn’t leaving until he has the antibiotics he still believes James needs.

“Let’s just get this over and done with.” Gareth hates that his voice is full of desperation.  
  
  
* * *  
  
They break into the pharmacy by ramming through the back door. It lands with a loud thud, sending boxes of merchandise flying everywhere.

“Well, that’s just great.” Masche’s face is red with anger.

“There are still plenty of pills.” Gareth looks around the small room. There are dozens of shelves, all neatly stacked with various medications. “Masche, can you remember what types of antibiotics they said were effective on the news before it shut down?”

“Yes,” he replies sharply. “Leave it to me.”

“Guys…” Leo’s voice is wavering. “Look over there.”

The floor is coated in blood stains. They lead all the way up to a flight of stairs.

“It’s dark and it’s dry,” Gareth says, stooping down to look at the mess. “Whoever this blood belongs to, it wasn’t spilled recently.”

Masche is scouring the shelves that surround them, making quick progress as he walks from one side of the room to the other.

“So, let’s not go upstairs, alright?” Leo asks.

But Masche doesn’t answer. He seems to be an almost hypnotic state, concentrating on his task. Yet Gareth is sure he can see tears in the Argentine’s eyes.

“Are you okay, Masche?”

“I’m fine,” he replies brusquely to Gareth’s softly asked question.

Gareth knows how to take a hint. He walks away wordlessly, exploring the opposite end of the shop floor. There isn’t a whole lot to look at – it’s only a small pharmacy.

His eyes wander over the goods for sale. Everything is coated in a thick layer of dust; it’s more evidence that no one else has been here in a while. Somehow, it’s reassuring. There is just one stand with food on it. Gareth thinks back to what Sergio said earlier. The group will need more supplies soon. At least something good can come out of the day’s events if he can take some of this back to Masche’s house.

He didn’t come prepared, so he turns and looks around – surely there are some bags in here somewhere. Just opposite, his eyes land on a small counter and a cash register. He walks over to it, and sure enough, there’s a pile of bags laid aside for customers. Gareth leans over to grab a couple. It’s then that his eyes land on a photograph of two smiling young children, standing next to their parents. Gareth feels a stab of anguish in his chest. He has no idea what happened to the kids or the family, and now he’s probably stealing from them. He wasn’t made for this kind of life, but then again, none of the other survivors were either.

He fills the bags with shaking hands, adding candy bars, bags of dried pasta, and some canned food.

“Wow, you found some food?” Masche asks, approaching him.

“Yeah,” Gareth replies solemnly.

“Well, that’s good.” Masche sighs. “After all, we’re running low.”

“It’s not much.” Gareth shrugs.

“I don’t think I can eat any of it anyway.” Leo groans, holding his stomach.

“Are you still not feeling better?” Gareth asks.

“I feel worse if anything.”

As Gareth looks at Leo, he can see that for himself. “Masche, did you get what we needed?” He asks.

“I did.” He nods, waving the back of supplies that send his hand. “Now come on, let’s get the hell out of here.”  


* * *

The journey back to Masche’s house is thankfully, uneventful. Leo sits in the car with the window open, wafting himself with the fresh air to help his nausea.  Gareth’s stomach churns too, not because he feels ill, but because this is going to be the moment of truth. Soon, they’ll know if James has turned.

Masche carefully manoeuvres the car into his driveway. Gareth’s heart is racing in his chest. The large gate swings open, with Rafa standing behind it. He’s frowning, his face etched with worry.

“Oh no,” Masche mutters. “This doesn’t look promising.”

As Masche turns off the engine, Gareth hurries to get out.

“Rafa, what’s wrong?” He asks. “Is James okay?”

“It’s Ney,” Rafa replies. “He got sick too.”

“Yeah,” Leo says, staggering out of the car. “I’m not feeling too great myself.”

“Whatever this is, it isn’t caused by the virus.” Rafa shakes his head.

“Oh, it’s caused by a virus of a type,” Masche replies. “Its common name is influenza.”

“All of the hysteria we went through this morning was for nothing.” Rafa raises his voice. “Geri, Sergio and Luka are still out there. What the fuck are we going to do about that?”

“It wasn’t all for nothing, because we have food and medication,” Gareth points out. “The other lads will be back. I’m sure of it. They know what they’re doing.” He starts to walk away.

“Where are you going?” Rafa asks. “I never speak up about anything – I always go with the flow, I always try to help everybody else. But this… this has made me really angry.”

“I’m going to give James his antibiotics,” Gareth replies defiantly. “Just like I promised him.”

“That’s great, you go ahead and give him medication he doesn’t need.” Rafa’s face is red with anger. Truthfully, Gareth doesn’t blame him for feeling this way, but now isn’t the time to have this discussion.

He heads up the stairs, and knocks on James’s door.

“Come in.” Cristiano’s voice sounds from within.

Gareth slides the door open slowly, hesitantly stepping inside. Cristiano sits on a bedside chair, stony faced, his arms folded and his lips pursed as if in disapproval. James still lies on the bed, mopping at his brow with a wet cloth. If anything, Gareth doesn’t think he looks as bad he did earlier.

“How are you doing?” He asks softly.

“I’m still human,” James replies. “That must be a bonus, right?”

Gareth smiles, but he quickly frowns when Cristiano shoots an angry look in his direction. He can’t be sure what it is he’s done wrong – after all, he was prepared to put his life on the line to get the medication he thought James needed. Yet once again, Cristiano seems to be cross with him.

“I… I got the pills you need,” he says.

“I probably don’t need them now.” James stares down at the bed covers.

“You’re still taking them.” Gareth holds out the bottle. “Just to be on the safe side.”

“What a fucking disaster!” Cristiano breaks his silence. “Today has been one big joke.”

“You’re just mad that I know the truth,” James says. “If you hadn’t thought I was dying, when would you have told me about kissing Gareth, and about your immunity?”

Cristiano doesn’t have an answer.

Gareth’s hand starts to shake, the pills are still in it. James reaches over. Gareth can feel his fingers on the back of his hand. They’re soft and warm, and as James takes the bottle away from him, Gareth feels as though a bolt of electricity has passed between them.

“Thank you, Gareth.” James stares up into his eyes. “I won’t forget what you did for me today.”

Gareth wants to say that it wasn’t just him, because Geri was the one who came up with the plan to go to the pharmacy. Geri is the one risking his life by trying to find help at the hospital. But instead, Gareth says nothing. He only knows that James’s gratitude means more to him than it should.

 

* * *

With Neymar, Leo and James all in bed sick, and Cristiano sulking somewhere upstairs, there aren’t many of them gathered around the dinner table that evening. Gareth spoons pasta into his mouth, chewing nervously. He’s only eating so he has a distraction from everything else that’s going on.

It’s been dark outside for a few hours now. Geri, Sergio and Luka haven’t come back.

Masche stares into space, leaving his food untouched.

“Please eat your food,” Rafa says gently. “Maybe we can go and look for the other guys in the morning.”

“Something is very wrong,” Masche replies, his voice breaking as he speaks. “They would have done everything in their power to get back to us before nightfall. Even if they’d had no luck at the first hospital they’d gone to, they would have turned back and come home. They wouldn’t risk staying out there… they know how dangerous it is.”

Gareth swallows hard. He opens his mouth to speak, but no words come out. He knows Masche is right. Geri, Sergio and Luka wouldn’t have abandoned them like this – not for anything.

“We’ll look for them in the morning.” Rafa stresses the statement more firmly this time, as if trying to instil self-belief into his words.

“Where do we even start? Where do we go?” Masche asks. “Besides, we have three guys down with flu and I’d still expect that number to rise. There’s going to be no one left to keep watch here.”

Gareth sighs, shaking internally. He pushes his bowl of pasta aside. “I’m going to head up to the balcony now,” he says. “I’ll keep watch for the next couple of hours.”

“Thanks.” Masche nods in acknowledgement. Notably, Rafa ignores him.

Truthfully, Gareth just had to get away from the two of them and their dark looks. He needs to put his thoughts into perspective. He walks up the stairs, passing James’s and Cristiano’s room. He wonders what they’re talking about; that is, if they’re even talking to each other. He hovers outside the door for a moment, and contemplates going in. All he can hear is silence. In the end, he decides to turn away.

He heads onto the balcony, the clear, starry night greeting him. Once it gets dark, there is constant noise. Gareth watches as zombies roam aimlessly from street to street. He shudders as he looks at those that are tapping on Masche’s reinforced fence, scrambling to find a way in.

He stares out into the distance, wondering where on earth Geri, Sergio and Luka could be.


	16. Una Sorpresa (A Surprise)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I changed my username from aguero to Serard. Geri and Sese are officially ruining my life :) Sorry for any confusion, haha.
> 
> Trigger warning that there's a fair amount of zombie horror/gore/scary stuff in this chapter. It's actually quite a dark chapter in general.

Three things go wrong before they get to the hospital. Yet, as Geri sits behind the steering wheel of the bus, he is blissfully unaware that any of them are about to happen.

Despite the severity of the situation, he finds a level of comfort in driving the bus again, with an open road ahead of him. It’s just like old times. He’s happy the group made it to Barcelona and strengthened their numbers, but being here, with Sergio perched closely behind him, makes Geri nostalgic for the days when they were back at the cabin.

“Sometimes, I still can’t believe Geri and I are together,” Sergio tells Luka.

“I can.” Luka rolls his eyes playfully. “You two are so alike, it’s infuriating.”

“How can a Culé and a Madridista be alike?” Geri asks, but his lips are already curling into a grin.

“You’re both symbolic at your respective teams,” Luka replies. “Passionate and dedicated.”

“We are pretty awesome,” Sergio says. “Especially me.”

“Then there’s the fact that you’re both stubborn and hot-headed.” Luka sighs. “Neither of you will admit when you’re wrong…”

“Hey!” Geri interrupts. “When did this turn into a character assassination?”

“It’s not a character assassination,” Luka replies calmly. “Like I said, you two are made for each other. I think for the longest time, you were the only people who didn’t see that.”

Geri ponders the comment for a moment, letting it settle into his mind.

“What about Cris and James?” Sergio asks. “Do you think they’re made for each other as well?”

Luka shifts uncomfortably. “I think that it’s not too late to turn back,” Luka replies. “We don’t have to do this.”

“We can’t just do nothing,” Sergio says. “It wouldn’t be right. As a group, we all need to keep fighting for each other.”

“They’re both my friends.” Luka hangs his head downwards. “I think we should have stayed with them. We should all be there for Cris when James… when the infection takes hold.” His voice shakes.

“No.” Geri shakes his head. “We need to be proactive. It’s better that we’re doing this, and that we’re reaching out to get help.”

“Someone, somewhere, must be capable of stopping the infection.” Sergio’s voice is barely a whisper. There’s no conviction to his words.

“Eventually someone will stop it,” Luka says pragmatically. “But I think it’ll take years. The entire world was hit pretty badly. It’s going to take a long time to recover from.”

“You saw much more than us during those early days.” Geri thinks back to the conversation they had the first night they spent at Masche’s house. “We left Camp Nou and ran for our lives. I thought staying in the cabin would only be a temporary measure and that someone would find us. I still find it impossible to believe that the world has completely collapsed. There must be people out there, somewhere. Even if they’re all in hiding.”

“After what I saw when I was kidnapped by the gang, I feel like some people already have started over again,” Sergio replies. “At least that’s what they all thought. They believed they were suffering for nothing, and that others weren’t doing.”

“I’m not denying the fact there could be safe areas out there.” Luka sighs. “But if there are, then why aren’t they looking for the rest of us?”

“Like you said, it will take time.” Sergio chews on his lower lip. “Maybe they don’t have the resources yet.”

“If you look back at history, humanity has always rebounded from even the most hopeless of disasters,” Luka says. “But if you want my opinion, then we have to lie low. We don’t need any more excursions like this, not until we know they’re absolutely necessary.”

“Is he always like this?” Geri asks, tilting his head towards Sergio.

“If you’re asking me if Luka is always too smart for his own good, then yes.” Sergio laughs dryly.

“I think you’re pretty smart too, Geri,” Luka replies.

“If I was that smart then we wouldn’t be in the situation we’re in now.” Geri frowns.

“You’re alive, aren’t you?” Luka asks. “And other people are only alive as a direct result of your actions.”

“That’s true.” Geri admits. “But you still think that what we’re trying to do for James is a mistake.”

“I do.” Luka nods. “Yet at the same time, I understand that we have to try.”

“Do you still think going to the islands is mistake too?” Sergio asks.

“Yes. Absolutely.” Luka is adamant. “I think we’re far safer staying holed up in Masche’s house. Moving around and going from place to place… it’s stupid. If any of our loved ones are out there, they’re going to come looking for us at our last known location first.”

Geri takes a deep breath. He hates feeling torn like this. He wants to help Leo find Kun, but his head tells him that Luka’s rational way of thinking is probably right. Whatever choice he makes about the future, he’ll be letting somebody down.

He tries hard to concentrate on driving. The stretch of road they’re currently on is suffering from neglect. A variety of debris is spread across it – clothes, leaves and personal belongings. Geri learned long ago not to look at any of it for too long. Sometimes the human cost of the apocalypse is simply too much to bear.

He fails to see the shattered glass directly in front of him. He doesn’t even realise that he’s driven straight over it until it’s too late. The steering wheel vibrates under his fingers, startling him into awareness. Suddenly, he has to hold it to one side to keep the bus going in a straight direction. A groaning, grinding sound emits from underneath the vehicle.

“Shit.” He grips the steering system tightly, but it makes no difference. “I think I hit something, guys.”

“Pull over,” Sergio replies. “We probably have a flat tyre.”

“But I just, literally, changed one of the tyres.” Luka groans.

Carefully, Geri brings the bus to a stop. All three men get out.

“The entire road is full of glass.” Sergio puts his hands on his hips.

“I’m sorry,” Geri says. “I didn’t see it.”

“It’s okay,” Sergio replies. “It’s not as if the roads are in any fit state to drive on any more.”

“I should have been paying more attention.” Geri scolds himself.

“What are we going to do?” Sergio asks. “Luka, do we have another spare?”

“Leave it to me,” he replies. “There’s another tyre in the back. But it took me over an hour to change the last one, so this isn’t going to be a two-minute job.”

“Fuck!” Geri exclaims. “This is going to slow us down too much.”

“There’s nothing we can do.” Sergio reaches over and rubs his back with the palm of his hand.

“Okay.” Luka starts grabbing tools from the back of the bus. “Let’s get started.”

 Geri is relieved that Luka seems to know what he’s doing. He looks around the immediate vicinity. They’re on a large, main road, but they’re also terribly exposed. Of all the places they could break down, it would have to be here.

“Maybe I can help?” Sergio suggests, leaning over to survey Luka’s tools.

“That would be great, actually.” Luka looks up at him with a smile. “Help me jack her up.”

Geri can’t help but feel useless as he stands around watching the other two work furiously. He checks his watch from time to time, silently willing them to finish their task quickly.

“Jesus, this is wedged on really well.” Sergio stops to wipe sweat off his brow with the back of his hand.

Luka is still trying to wrench at the nuts and bolts that are holding the old wheel in place. “The last one wasn’t easy,” he says.

Sergio takes a second to get his breath. “I feel tired,” he says.

Geri immediately turns towards him. “You want me to take over?” He asks, concern in his eyes.

“No, no I’m good.” But Sergio’s face is bright red. “I just feel like maybe I’m coming down with something.”

Geri’s heart sinks. Maybe Luka was right, maybe it’s an outbreak of flu after all. He watches Sergio closely, his worry rising and making his stomach knot. He simply cannot let anything bad happen to him. A quick check of his watch tells him that they’ve been trying to change this tyre for 40 minutes now, and the old wheel still isn’t off. He paces on the spot nervously.

Watching Sergio and Luka struggle is starting to grate on his nerves, so Geri walks around to the front of the bus. He takes his water bottle, rationing himself to only one sip of the liquid. Someone taps him on the back.

“Yes?” He turns around, expecting to see one of the other guys standing in front of him. Instead, he finds himself face-to-face with a zombie.

His blood runs cold.

The creature lurches towards him, taking him completely by surprise. He barely has time to grab his knife before it’s on him. He watches as it opens its jaw, ready to bite away a chunk of his flesh. He sticks his knife in its forehead in the nick of time and twists it as hard and as fast as he can. He closes his eyes and gasps as it lets out its last scream and crumples to the ground in front of him.

“Geri!” Sergio’s voice pierces the air.

“I’m okay!” He shouts back.

“There are more of them.” Sergio’s voice is strained as he makes the warning.

“And by more of them, we mean lots of them,” Luka calls out.

Geri reacts instantly. He runs around to where the other two men are, holding the knife out in his hand. Sure enough, a large group of zombies are approaching.

“Get that tyre changed, now!” Geri orders. “Just keep working, and I’ll hold them off.”

“Geri, here.” Sergio slides a crowbar and an axe from the toolbox across the floor towards him. “Use these.”

Geri’s never faced this many zombies by himself before. He stands in front of Luka and Sergio, and makes a silent vow to guard them with his life.

He takes the first one out with the axe, hitting it straight between the eyes. It’s seamless. In the distance, a group of four approaches. This is when Geri’s grateful for the fact that he’s an athlete. Zombies aren’t the nimblest of creatures to begin with, and he’s way, way quicker than them.

The first sinks at his feet, defeated by the crowbar at close range. He sticks the knife under the jaw of the second, and delivers a kick to the stomach of the third, sending it staggering away. With the extra breathing space, he is able to take a strong aim at it with the axe, finishing it off. He uses the knife on the fourth. He’s only vaguely aware of the noise of Luka and Sergio continuing to work in the background.

“Geri, that was very smooth.” He turns around to see Sergio looking at him. Part of him knows that it’s wrong, but impressing Sergio by being badass excites him.

“Are you almost done?” He asks, catching his breath and trying to remain composed.

“The wheel’s almost off, hombre,” Sergio replies, his eyes fixed on Geri.

“Great.”

Geri turns around. The next group of zombies is approaching, and this time there are too many of them to count. Geri swallows hard. There must be at least 30 or 40 – way too many for him to handle by himself.

“Uh… guys?” His voice starts to tremble. “You may need to hurry things along.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Luka stares at the approaching horde open-mouthed.

“Luka, let’s keep working!” Sergio urges.

Instinctively, Geri reaches for his gun. He doesn’t even have 10 bullets, let alone the quantity he needs.

“Geri, don’t shoot them!” Sergio yells.

Geri purses his lips together in annoyance, because Sergio always seems to know what he’s going to try to do before he does it. “What else can I do?” He asks. “I have to take some of them out quickly.”

“Yes!” Luka’s voice is uncharacteristically animated.

The old tyre is off, at last. When Geri hears it drop to the floor it’s like music to his ears.

“We can do this now,” Luka says. “We only need a couple of minutes to get the new tyre on, so just try to hold off the first few of the infected, Geri.”

Geri looks around at the litter on the floor. He grabs a couple of glass bottles, throwing them away from the bus. The diversion works, as several zombies hear the noise and start walking in the wrong direction.

“Okay, okay, come on,” he whispers, psyching himself up. A group of seven is approaching him.

It’s frightening how automatically he does this now. Killing one, two, three of them straight away. The axe gets stuck in the fourth. He tries to wrestle it away, but he loses his balance. The zombie is hurt, but it isn’t dead. Geri crawls along the floor on his back, kicking at the creature to try and put some distance between it and himself.  
  
_Shit_ , he thinks inwardly, _what rotten luck_.

He reaches for the gun, and he has no choice but to shoot it. The shot pierces through the air, echoing violently. Now every zombie within the vicinity turns towards him.

He grabs one of the shards of glass that surround him, sticking it straight into a zombie’s throat. He’s still trying to crawl away, but two more are almost on him.

“We’re done Geri, we’ve got the new tyre on!” Hearing this news from Sergio does little to reassure him.

He fires the gun again once, twice, taking out his pursuers. Thank goodness he paid attention when Sergio was teaching them all to shoot back at the cabin.

Luka and Sergio are against him now, and he feels them hoisting him up to his feet.

“Those fucking monsters.” Luka makes a retching noise. “Geri, you’re covered in their sticky guts.”

“You should hear yourself,” Geri replies. “That’s the first time I’ve heard you call them anything derogatory.”

“It’s the first time I’ve been this close to them.” Luka shudders. “I’m much more comfortable being the guy who fixes things up, rather than being on the front line.”

“Seriously you two, we need to get going.” Sergio has his hands on his hips. “There are more of them on the way.”

“Yeah, let’s get back on the bus.” Geri manages a wry smile.

  
* * *  
  
Geri wipes his face with an old cloth he finds in the glove box and starts driving. The first hospital he’d pinpointed to visit isn’t far away, but they’ve already lost more than half the day thanks to the flat tyre. Once they’ve scouted this hospital, they’ll have to head back home. If they have no luck here, then they’ll have accomplished nothing when it comes to helping James. Scepticism is mounting in Geri’s consciousness as he looks over at Sergio.

“Sese, you look terrible,” Geri observes out loud.

“I’m the hottest guy here by quite some margin,” he replies, a narrow smile forming across his face. But he looks pale and tired, and he is sweating, much like James was earlier.

“I knew it was flu, I said so, right from the beginning.” Luka lets out a sigh. Geri can understand his disappointment. He has every right to feel this way.

“Are we going to turn back?” Sergio asks.

“No.” Geri shakes his head. “We’ve come this far, we have to try. I hope it is flu – I hope all of this was just a false alarm. Maybe going to the hospital will still benefit us somehow.”

“I hope it’s not overrun,” Sergio says quietly. “I feel exhausted.”

Geri can’t help but worry at the comment. Sergio is a warrior, and he never gives in easily. He must truly be unwell if he’s admitting to feeling too ill to fight.

“I’ll take care of you.” Geri knows the statement is a firm promise. “I won’t let anything bad happen to you in there.”

They drive further onto the highway, and for a few minutes there’s only the noise of the wheels on the tarmac beneath them.

“Here’s the turning for the hospital.”

Geri slows the bus down, before turning onto the slip road. Almost immediately after going around the first corner he has to slam the brakes on.

“Whoa!” Luka exclaims. “What on earth happened here?”

The road is completely jammed with vehicles that have crashed into one another in what can only be described as a huge pileup. It stretches all the way to the hospital.

“They were trying to get help,” Sergio says. “Just like us. I bet when the apocalypse happened this was the first place people came.”

Geri feels a stab of pain in his heart. It’s a truly horrific scene. Most of the vehicles are covered in autumn leaves and other debris, indicating that they’ve been left this way for months. Nobody tried to come to rescue them. He switches the bus engine off and rests his head on the steering wheel.

All three men remain silent for a few moments.

“Perhaps we should admit defeat after all, and turn back,” Geri says.

“No.” Sergio’s voice sounds strained but determined. “We’re only a few metres away from the entrance of the hospital, Geri.”

“Do you feel well enough to do this?” Luka asks.

“Yes,” Sergio replies. As usual, Geri isn’t sure he believes him.

“Grab your weapons then, and we’ll go,” Geri says reluctantly.

 As they step off the bus, the enormity of the scene becomes more evident. There are so many vehicles here, and they’ve all crashed into one another. Geri spots several ambulances among the cars and vans.

“I don’t get it,” Luka says as they begin walking. “Did everybody just die and turn into the infected at the same time or something?”

Geri doesn’t want to look, because he doesn’t want to know. It’s only when he hears thumping from one of the cars that he turns around. A zombie is trapped inside it, desperate to get out. He looks at the next vehicle, and the one after that, all the passengers have turned.

“They got trapped in the vehicles because of the crash.” There’s no strength in Sergio’s voice as he makes the statement. “They must have been hysterical, they must have been terrified.”

“This… this is horrible.” Geri’s legs feel weak beneath him. He urges himself to go on, and to make it to the hospital.

He’s seen many horrible things since the apocalypse began. But the zombies trapped in these cars is an image he’ll never forget.

“Nearly there,” Luka says reassuringly. Yet the ten minute walk feels as though it’s taking an eternity.

The front of the hospital is a wreck. All the windows are smashed, and the desk at reception is deserted.

“Let’s keep going.” Sergio has one hand in his pocket, and his eyes are fixed on the corridor ahead. “Everyone stay close to each other.”

“This is pointless,” Luka whispers.

As they get further down the corridor, it resembles a macabre horror movie. Blood stains regularly grace the floor, and there are abandoned stretchers and beds. Most of the side rooms have been broken into. Geri supposes people must’ve come here, looking for drugs. He knew the hospital was a long shot, but he didn’t think coming here would be quite this bleak.

He finds himself wondering how on earth they’re going to survive this apocalypse. Wherever they turn, the situation seems to grow more hopeless.

“How much further do we go?” Geri asks. “This is a big hospital, it could take us hours to search it.”

“Let’s just do a little more before we head back and call it a day,” Sergio replies.

They keep on walking towards the operating theatres. Geri is acutely aware that he is shaking involuntarily. He desperately wants to get out of here, to get back on the bus and to take Luka and Sergio back to Masche’s house. This hospital isn’t a house of healing any more – it feels like a bad, evil place.

With the absence of any windows, the light diminishes rapidly as they travel deeper and deeper into the building. Luka switches a torch on, but it’s murky and dusty in the distance, and Geri isn’t at all sure where he’s going.

“I want to go back.” This time it’s Luka’s voice that’s cracking. “This is too much now.”

“I agree,” Geri replies. “We’ve seen enough, this isn’t getting us anywhere.”

“All of this, just for us to go back empty-handed.” Sergio exhales loudly, and Geri can see he’s annoyed.

They turn around, and start walking back the way they came.

Somewhere from behind them, there’s a crashing noise. It sounds as though objects – medical instruments – have been scattered all over the floor.

“What the fuck was that?” All the hairs on the back of Geri’s neck stand on end.

Sergio already has both of his hands around his gun, holding it out in front of him.

“It came from back around the corner, let’s look,” Luka says.

Sergio is first, with Luka a close second. Geri grabs his own gun, and decides to be ready to back them up if he’s needed.

“Oh my God,” Sergio whispers.

A fresh trail of blood is on the floor, leading up to a tall, blonde man who has collapsed in the dark corridor. His arm is bleeding profusely. Once Luka shines the torch on his face, Geri recognises him instantly.

He doesn’t have time to react, because another man grabs him from behind. He wraps his strong, muscular arm around his throat, and Geri can feel that he’s being choked out. The gun falls from his fingers, and the man who has attacked him grabs it. He feels the cold steel of it being pressed against his temple. He wants to scream, he wants to warn the others, but his throat is so constricted he can barely make a sound.

A third man shouts out from behind him.

“Stop! Put the gun down. It’s Gerard.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who do you hope the three new characters are?!


	17. Reunidos (Reunited)

The hold on Geri's throat tightens. Sparks fly in his field of vision, and he expects to lose consciousness at any second. The gun still presses against his temple.

"Luis, I said stop!"

Geri finds himself dropped unceremoniously onto the floor. He rubs at his neck and his Adam's apple, somehow feeling as though they're still constricted. Once his vision stops blurring and returns to normal, he can make out that Marcelo is the man who stopped Luis from doing whatever catastrophic thing he was about to do.

Marcelo and Luis – the sight of them together is almost too much to take in. Geri wonders if his eyes are playing tricks on him.

But no, every bit of this has been real.

Sergio storms around the corner, standing in front of Geri protectively. He glares at Luis venomously. It is times like this, when Sergio says nothing, that he is at his most intimidating. But when he sees Marcelo's face something immediately softens in him.

"Is it really you?" Marcelo asks, shaking as he steps forward.

"Oh, Marcelo." Sergio immediately pulls him into a hug, burying his face against Marcelo's long hair.

Geri knows it's wrong, but he feels a flicker of jealousy at their intimacy.

"Toni!" Marcelo gasps, pulling away from Sergio. "He got hurt, we came here to find help for him."

"Yeah, we came here to try and find help too." Sergio rolls his eyes. "There was none."

"But we found you," Luka says, embracing Marcelo tightly. "That alone makes all of this worth it."

"Just help Toni," Marcelo whispers, tears in his eyes. "Please."

Still shell-shocked from the attack by Luis, and overwhelmed by the fact they've found three more survivors, it takes Geri a moment to gather himself.

"I can take a look at him," he says softly, getting to his feet. When he turns to go around the corner, Luis is standing there with his arms folded, like some kind of bodyguard.

"What are you going to do about him?" Sergio asks, pointing at Luis.

"He's… he's not well," Marcelo replies, looking despondent.

"No shit." Sergio puts his hands on his hips, glaring at him.

"Luis, don't you recognise me?" Geri asks. "It's me, Geri."

Luis's face doesn't move.

"We need to get to Toni," Luka says. "I'll come with you."

"Okay." Geri sighs, moving with some hesitance. The last thing he wants to do is leave Sergio with an unhinged Luis, especially since he has flu, but it's not as if he has a choice.

"Thanks…" Toni looks across at Geri and Luka, all the while clinging on to his bad arm. "You came so quickly," he says sarcastically.

"Toni, I'm so sorry." Geri says.

"We had a little trouble." Luka sighs.

"Luis." Toni manages a weak smile. "Am I right?"

"Got it in one," Luka replies.

"He's not coping with any of this very well," Toni says. "But Marcelo and I would probably be dead but for him. He's helped us stay safe."

"We have a lot to catch up on," Geri says. "But for now, I'm going to concentrate on that arm of yours."

Geri leans down against Toni, peering at his injury. He can't see much, other than the blood that has seeped through the makeshift tourniquet someone has tied around his arm.

"Geri, I can see a first-aid kit over here." Luka points towards the wall.

"That's perfect Luka, thank you." Geri feels a slight sense of relief, but his hands are shaking. He isn't qualified to be doing this kind of thing and he has no idea how bad Toni's injury actually is.

"What happened to you?" Luka asks Toni.

It's the perfect distraction while Geri unties the tourniquet. He hopes Luka will keep Toni talking while he works on him.

"Basically, I smashed a window," Toni says as though it's not a big thing at all. "We needed to escape, and fast."

"From the infected?" Luka asks. "Where have the three of you been all this time?"

"Here, there, everywhere," Toni replies. "We've been moving around Barcelona since this entire thing started. Nowhere seems to stay very safe for long."

Geri can see the wound now. It's deep, but not so deep that he doesn't think he can stitch it up properly. Then Geri remembers he's still covered in zombie guts. That can't be very hygienic.

"I need to wash my hands," he says.

"I doubt there'll be any running water here." Luka frowns. "Let me look around, there must be something we can use."

"Is it bad?" Toni asks, turning his neck to look at his arm.

"I don't think it's disastrous," Geri replies. "But it's deep. You must be in a lot of pain."

"I am." Toni nods. "But I wasn't in so much pain that I couldn't run, thankfully."

Geri looks at him with a mixture of sympathy and admiration.

"Okay," Luka calls out, returning from a side room. "This is the best I could do."

He offers Geri a bottle of alcohol and some clean paper towels.

"Thanks, Luka." Geri offers him a smile. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

And he means it. Luka is the most practical member of the group, and he is also the voice of reason whenever the others seem to be at loggerheads. He dreads to think what would have happened today without him.

Geri pours alcohol over his hands, rubbing them thoroughly. He dries off with the paper towels. He allows himself a moment to look over at Toni. He really doesn't want to have to do this. He remembers how Cristiano yelped and cried as he cleaned and dressed his wound. Now, he must do the same to somebody else.

"This isn't going to be pretty." Geri sighs as he makes the stark warning.

"Just get on with it," Toni says.

Seconds later, Toni lets out a piercing scream as Geri tries to clean the wound. Luis immediately runs towards him, his fists clenched. It takes Sergio, Luka and Marcelo to hold him back.

"Well…" Geri exclaims. "At least he likes you Toni, eh?"  
  
* * *  
  
The six men sit huddled in a side room, all exhausted after the events of the day. Toni's injury is clean and bandaged, yet he still winces in pain every time he moves.

"There's no way we can travel back to Masche's house tonight," Luka says.

"I really don't want to have to stay here." Geri closes his eyes. Everything about the hospital freaks him out. The smell, the decay, and all the little signs that point to just how badly society has collapsed.

"We killed some of the infected on our way in here," Marcelo says. "If we stay put, we're going to be trapped in this building with them."

"If we go outside, we'll be their dinner," Sergio replies. He rubs his head, and Geri can see that his eyes are bloodshot and his face is red.

"We'll have to camp out here overnight, and leave at first light." Luka folds his arms.

"The others will wonder why we've not come back." Geri chews on his lower lip. "We have no way of letting them know that we're safe, and they'll be going out of their minds."

"I'll work on that," Luka says, eyes full of determination. "I'm not allowing anything like this to happen again. Once this has all been dealt with, we're going back to fetch the radios from where the gang on the highway used to be."

"Gang on the highway?" Toni asks.

"It's a very long story," Geri replies, not wanting to discuss _that_ memory tonight.

"I wanted to see Cris and James so much." Marcelo flashes the smallest of smiles. "I can't believe they're alive. I can't believe any of you are alive."

"I should warn you that there's a very good chance you'll contract flu if you come back with us," Sergio says dryly.

"We probably all have it already," Luka replies. "I guess we'll find out over the next forty-eight hours or so."

"Life just keeps on getting better and better, doesn't it?" Sergio groans.

"We found you guys, and I'm not bleeding heavily anymore," Toni says. "I'd say we've had a pretty decent day to be honest."

Geri lets his mind wander back to the situation at Masche's house. If James has the virus, and not flu, then chances are he'll have turned by now. He promised to help him, and here he is, trapped in this creepy hospital for several more hours at least.

He looks around at the other men, desperate for a distraction. Luis's dark eyes are fixed on the floor, and he still hasn't said anything since they found him again. This isn't the way he remembers his friend and teammate. Luis is a joker, and was almost as good at promoting togetherness back at FC Barcelona as the club captains themselves were. It's hard to see him like this.

"How long has Luis been unwell?" Geri asks softly.

"Since the beginning," Marcelo replies. "Sometimes he talks, but only when he absolutely needs to."

"Like I said, he's kept us safe," Toni chips in. "He's been a loyal friend, in his own way."

"It's okay, Luis," Geri says. "Maybe it's time you let some of us look after you now. You have no idea how happy Leo is going to be to see you."

Luis tilts his head to look at him at the mention of Leo's name. Geri takes this small level of engagement as a sign of improvement.

"We all have our own ways of dealing with terrible things, I suppose." Luka adds.

"Yeah, Geri's was to start sleeping with Sergio." Marcelo laughs. It's warm and infectious, and is probably the best sound Geri's heard all day, even if the joke is at his expense.

"He's actually alright when he's not in a Barcelona shirt," Sergio says.

Geri laughs too, and rests his head on Sergio's shoulder. He can feel his skin burning with fever against his cheek. It's still the most intimate they've been with each other in what feels like forever, and all Geri wants is to know that Sergio is there, next to him. The thought of being without him isn't worth contemplating.

He's never experienced feelings as intense as these before, and it scares him to think how close Sergio and he came to never knowing what they could have together.

Yet even now, at the centre of almost everything they do, the undercurrent of Real Madrid versus Barcelona still runs wild. Geri knows that despite the circumstances the Madridistas are closer to each other than they are to any of the Barcelona players. Sergio and he are the only exception. Sometimes, the divisiveness truly gets to him. Not even an apocalypse can change everything.

He closes his eyes and tries to sleep.  
  
* * *  
  
The morning brings new energy and new hope. Even Sergio, who is exhausted from trying to fight the flu, is keen to get moving and to go back to Masche's house. It makes the task of trying to get back to the bus a little bit easier. Geri hasn't forgotten the numerous vehicles all piled up against one another, and the poor souls who ended up being trapped inside them. Today, as guilty as it makes him feel, he looks away.

"I can't believe I'm getting on an FC Barcelona team bus, and I'm actually happy about it," Toni says.

"Okay, but why are there bullet holes in it?" Marcelo asks. He looks the bus up and down carefully.

"That's an excellent question," Sergio replies, flopping into the seat behind Geri's. "And one I totally don't have the energy to answer now."

"Oh, the stories we're going to tell you." Geri smiles as he turns the key in the ignition and starts the engine. "You have no idea."

"We might have some of our own, too," Toni replies.

In the reflection of the interior mirror, Geri can see Luka contentedly working away with cables and some other bits and pieces he took from the hospital. He has no idea what he's trying to do with it all, but he knows that whatever it is, it will benefit the group.

Only Luis continues to cause Geri concern. He sits at the back of the bus, staring vacantly into space. Geri wonders what on earth must be going through his mind.

It's not long since dawn, and it seems to be the best time for getting around in the city. There are fewer zombies on the roads, though they still pass hordes that the bus has to dodge from time to time.

"Luka, why do you think this is the best time of day to travel?" Geri can't resist putting him on the spot like this.

"It's funny you should ask that," he replies. "I've been working on a theory. Sunlight impairs the vision of the infected."

"So, after all this time, you're saying we could have defeated them with bright light rather than guns and knives." Sergio's tone is not entirely friendly.

"It's not as simple as that," Luka says. "But I think we could use light against them if it was done in the correct manner."

"Luka, when did you get this smart?" Marcelo asks.

"I'm not smart," he replies. "I'm just practical. I make the best of whatever I have."

Geri doesn't think he's ever been as happy to turn the corner that takes them onto the road where Masche lives. As soon as they're on it, Luis gets to his feet and jogs to the front of the bus.

The noise of the engine is enough to draw Masche and Gareth out of the house.

"It's Gaz!" Toni exclaims, waving with his uninjured arm.

As soon as Geri brings the bus to a stop, Masche presses the button that opens the door.

"Holy shit, I'm glad to see you." He throws his arms around Geri, who can't ever remember Masche being this tender with him.

"We ended up getting stranded, it was dark and we couldn't get home," Geri manages to say even though Masche is still squeezing him tightly. "How's James?"

"He's okay. It was a false alarm. He has flu." Masche frowns. "Neymar and Leo have it too."

"Sergio has it as well." Geri sighs the deepest sigh of relief. "The entire trip wasn't in vain. Look who we found." He points towards the back of the bus.

"This… this is _amazing_ , Geri." Masche opens his arms, silently inviting Luis to embrace him. Instead, Luis walks straight past him and gets off the bus. "What was that?" Masche asks, dumbfounded.

"He's… not too well at the moment," Geri replies.

"You aren't kidding." Masche folds his arms. "He lives next door to me, you know. His house is the other side of Leo's. It must be emotional for him, coming back here."

"Leo!" Luis's voice pierces through the air. "Leo, where are you?"

Masche and Geri exchange a look. Marcelo gets off the bus, and Toni and Sergio follow him. Luka remains onboard at the back, still entranced by his plugs and cables.

The commotion Luis has caused has roused the rest of the household. One by one, everybody comes out through the gate. Even James, who still looks as sick as a dog, has made the effort to get out of bed.

"Oh my God, it's Marcelo!" Cristiano pushes through the crowd, and Marcelo runs towards him and James. Geri can't help but well up at the sight. He knows the three of them have always been close. It's touching to see them reunited.

Gareth hugs Toni, and the two of them start chattering away in English.

Leo is the last to emerge from the house, bleary eyed and looking from side to side, as though he has no idea what all the fuss is about.

"Leo!" Luis repeats the call.

Leo freezes, then his face bursts out into a wide grin. He runs towards Luis and jumps into his arms, as though they're celebrating scoring a goal. Luis holds Leo tightly, burying his head against his shoulder.

"Luis, I thought I'd never see you again." Leo's voice shakes.

"I think…" Luis's stammers groggily, having not used his voice for a long time. "There's still a stash of mate in my house."

"Then flu or no flu, what are we waiting for?" Leo smirks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally hit 50K! Thank you so much to everyone who's supported this fic so far :) I haven't added the new characters to the tags yet because I didn't want anyone to be spoiled. I'll add them next time I post a chapter.


	18. Planes Para El Futuro (Plans for the Future)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so, so sorry for taking such a long time to update. I was ready for a break from all things internet over the summer, but it feels really good to be back. I'll do my best to update much more regularly from now on and apologise again for keeping everybody waiting.
> 
> And yes, I totally changed usernames again after taking on board feedback about the old one. I'm definitely not changing again because it's so much hassle and I'm still here shamelessly representing Geri :)
> 
> Find me on [tumblr](http://piquegerard.tumblr.com).

Geri is one of the last people to fall victim to the flu. Just as he's on the verge of being convinced he's escaped it, he wakes in the middle of the night, his body aching and his temperature soaring.

 _It's just like Luka predicted_ , he thinks to himself. _It's taken every member of the group down, one by one_.

He doesn't have many coherent thoughts for several days after that. Life is just a blur. There is Sergio at his bedside, mopping his forehead with a cold cloth to try and bring his fever down. There are the nauseating smells of the canned soup and beans he tries to get Geri to eat.

From time to time, he is delirious. As he lies back on the bed, trapped in his feverish state, he begins to wonder if any of this is real. It's as though the apocalypse is one of his practical jokes gone wrong. When he sleeps, he dreams vividly. He stares down at his hands, only to find that they're covered in zombie blood. He knows too many zombies have fallen because of him. They were all human once, but Geri knows he's had to let his humanity slip away simply to survive. He shakes uncontrollably, searching for something, _anything_ to wash himself with. He longs to rid himself of memories of the undead.

"Geri, what is it?" Sergio's strong arms steady him, supporting his weight as he suddenly wakes.

Geri sees that his hands are, in fact, perfectly clean.

"Nothing," he whispers. "Just a bad dream."

Sergio stares at him, not moving an inch. "You're scaring me," he says.

"I'm scaring myself," Geri replies.  
  
* * *  
  
Once the worst of the fever has passed, he is left with the aches and pains, and the blocked sinuses that make dealing with flu so unbearable.

"I have to get out of this room," he tells Sergio one morning.  
  
"Can I get you anything?" Sergio asks him, brown eyes staring at him inquisitively. "There's no need for you to get up. You have to rest."

"No." Geri shakes his head. "I'm sure I'm getting over this now."

Sergio's eyebrows knit together. "That's what I thought when I tried to get out of bed for the first time. This flu is draining though, it sucks the life out of you. Truthfully, I still don't feel right, even now."

"Thank you for instilling me with so much confidence." Geri manages a laugh. "I'm still going downstairs today. I don't think I can stand the sight of these four walls for much longer."

"You want to leave the room, even though you have someone as handsome as me waiting on you?" Sergio smirks. "I'm offended."

"Help me up." Geri holds out his arms, his bones creaking as Sergio pulls him to his feet.

He realises, when he's about a third of the way down the stairs, that his boyfriend was probably right. His entire body feels too heavy, as though it belongs to somebody else and not him. He feels weak, far weaker than he like to admit, and powerless to do anything about it. Yet this will be the first time everyone's gathered properly since the group found Luis, Toni and Marcelo at the hospital. With their ever-increasing numbers, Geri hopes the group will have gained more strength.

"You're awake?" Gareth asks, face appearing at the bottom of the stairs. "Oh, good. They're having an argument in the kitchen."

Geri's spirits plummet, and he lets out a groan. Some things never change.

"We're going today." Leo's fist thuds onto the kitchen table. "We can't wait any longer."

Geri edges inside the room, flanked by Sergio and Gareth.

"You mean _you_ can't wait any longer," Luka replies, grimacing in Leo's direction.

"Enough of us are healthy now, we can easily get everything we need to head off to the islands." Leo folds his arms.

"Were you just planning on leaving me behind?" Geri asks, taken aback by how much the thought of Leo doing such a thing hurts him.

"No, no… of course not." There is no conviction to Leo's voice. "But Luis is here now, and he's more than willing to look after me if you're not well enough to go."

"Great." Geri frowns. "I'm surplus to requirements."

"It's not that." Masche intervenes. "It's been well over a month since I received Kun's message. The odds are getting less and less of us finding him safe and well."

Leo puts his head in his hands.

"But you don't even know what island he's on!" Neymar sighs. "Because he didn't say."

"Doesn't sound like a very helpful message to me." Marcelo shrugs, nudging James.

"The Balearics are the only hunch we have to go on," Sergio says. "There are definitely people there – the gang said as much."

"Believe me, I'm not at all happy. I don't trust any of you to get me across the ocean safely. But I can't live like this!" Cristiano purses his lips together. "If there's a way out of this awful mess, if there's a better way of life, then we must find it."

"If you'd all just give me a little bit more time then perhaps I'd be able to help," Luka says.

"How?" Toni replies.

"I'm working on something. Several things actually." Luka's lips curl into a smile.

"We haven't got time for that!" Leo raises his voice. "You've been tinkering with things ever since we got here, and I haven't seen you make any progress at all."

Luka's mouth opens as though he's about to speak, but instead, he stares at Leo, eyes sparkling with hurt.

"I trust Luka," Gareth says. "If anyone can get us out of this then it's him."

"I agree." Sergio nods.

Luka looks at them both, and Geri can sense his gratefulness for their loyalty.

"Maybe us splitting up into two groups is for the best," Leo says. "We're never all going to agree with one another."

"We're never going to agree, because you've gone out of your way to create a division within the group," Luka replies scathingly. "And it could prove to be disastrous."

With that, he leaves the room. Geri's uneasiness grows.

"What exactly do we need to get to make the trip?" Luis asks.

"The boat and the radios from where the gang were hiding out," Masche replies.

Sergio visibly flinches.

"We'll need some basic food rations as well," Leo says. "I think we have everything else we need here."

"There's no reason we can't get this done quickly." Luis folds his fingers together.

"That's what I've been saying for the last several weeks!" Leo raises his voice.

"I'm the only one who knows where the gang kept the boat," Sergio says quietly.

"There's no way on earth I'm letting you go back there." Geri's voice is defiant. "Not after what happened last time."

"I'm over it."

"You can't get over something like that." Geri puts a protective hand on Sergio's shoulder.

"I said I'm over it." Sergio pushes Geri's hand away. "A group of us will go and get the boat and the rest of the supplies today. Anything to stop this bickering."

"Then I'm coming," Geri says, though he is painfully aware of his body shaking.

"Like hell you are," Masche replies. "You look sicker than the undead."

Geri can feel the anger bubbling in his chest like a volcano. How dare everyone belittle him like this? "I'm going." The words are spat out venomously.

"It's fine." Sergio waves a hand dismissively. "I'd rather you stayed here, Geri."

"We'll take care of Sergio," Leo says.

"I'm more than capable of taking care of myself," Sergio replies dryly.

"That's exactly what I'm worried about." Geri sighs.  
  
* * *  
  
"I feel as though I've been ganged up on, and I hate it." Geri looks across at Rafa, who is checking his torch and his weapons meticulously.

"I'm not even going to the islands," Rafa says. "But I'm happy to help Leo and the rest of the guys to get everything they need for the journey."

"You're a better person than I am." Luka stands in the doorway, disdain written all over his face. "At least when they've gone I'll be able to get on with some work."

Toni sits beside Geri, still favouring his injured arm. "If it's not my place to ask then I'm sorry, but why are you so worried about Sergio going back to the gang's hideout?"

"Because they kidnapped him and kept him locked up there." Geri swallows hard, feeling a lump in his throat. "And the things Sergio saw – the things we had to do to get him out in one piece – no one gets over stuff like that."

Toni nods respectfully, and Geri's grateful for the fact he doesn't push him any further on the topic.

"Rafa, are you ready yet?" Sergio storms into the room. "We need to get moving."

"Be careful, Sese." Geri looks up at him.

"Cristiano is taking the first watch," Sergio says routinely. "Someone will need to go and make sure he gets a break in an hour or so."

"I might have a bad arm, but there's nothing wrong with my eyes," Toni replies, a small smile tugging at his lips.

" Sergio –" Luka starts to speak.

"Luka, please don't give me the third degree." Sergio interrupts. "I'm really not in the mood."

"I need you to make it a priority to get those radios," Luka says. "And you need to look out for any satellite phones."

"I thought all the phone lines were down." Rafa looks from Luka to Sergio.

"The satellites won't be down," Luka says. "Please Sergio, promise me you'll look."

 "I'll look, but I doubt they had anything like that." Sergio sighs. "If they had, they would have used it, wouldn't they?"

"I suppose." Luka stares at the floor. "But you can still try."

"Geri, you really need to rest," Sergio says, turning to him.

"I'm getting better," he replies. "I should be out there doing this with you, it's not fair."

"I know," Sergio whispers, their eyes meeting for a moment. "But I'll be back soon, I promise."

"You'd better be." Geri finally offers him a smile.  
  
  
  
Geri watches from the window as the bus finally pulls away. Perhaps Leo is right – the group has become too big now for them to sustain this uncertain way of living, and all of them want different things. Maybe they'll never live in harmony together again.

Never has he had so many doubts about where everybody should go from here. All he knows is that he won't feel right until Sergio is safely back with him, away from the place where he was held against his will.

"Are you just going to stand there until they come back?" Luka's voice catches him off guard.

"Maybe," Geri replies. "I'll stand here for as long as I have the strength to do so."

"I can think of far better uses of your energy."

"Like what?" Geri asks.

"I could use a little help over here," Luka says.

Geri walks into the living room. Toni is already perched over a pile of wires and electrical components that Luka has spread out across the floor.

"Wow," Geri says. "What are we supposed to be doing?"

"Good question." Toni grins.

"We're making batteries, of course," Luka replies as though it's the most normal thing in the world.

"Batteries for what?" Geri asks.

"What exactly do you think we should do when the current batteries keeping our generators going stop working?" Luka pulls a face. "We might not be able to get any more, so we need to make our own."

Toni collapses into fits of laughter.

"Fine, fine!" Geri fights back a laugh of his own. "You know, I always thought I was pretty practical until I met you, Luka."

"In some ways, I think I was made to handle disaster," Luka says, handing Geri a toolbox. "I'm going to teach you both how I do this."

As he starts sifting through the rest of his supplies, Geri notices something odd.

"Luka, what the hell is that?" He asks, pointing towards what looks like a bug zapper.

"Once I've converted it, it's going to be a deadly weapon." Luka smirks, holding it up.

"But it's a bug zapper," Toni says.

"You see a bug zapper, I see a taser," Luka replies. "A zombie blasting taser."

Geri grins. "No wonder you look so pleased with yourself."

"I'm just getting started," Luka says. "I'm going to get us out of this, even if it's the last thing that I do."

"It'd better not be the last thing you do." Toni looks over at him.

"If Sergio can find us a satellite phone, or if I can make radio contact with other people, then we'll really make some progress." Luka speaks with conviction.

"You really believe there are more survivors out there?" Toni asks.

"Are you sure it's not just some utopian dream?" Geri adds.

"There is far more out there than we could possibly know or understand," Luka replies. "Mark my words."

As whimsical as Luka's claims sound, Geri begins to believe him.


	19. El Almacén (The Warehouse)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My lovely readers, I'm sorry for the huge delay in getting this update posted. I've been sick and working on an exchange. I know I always have some kind of excuse, and I apologise for not doing better. Trigger warning that this is a particularly gruesome chapter, and well, I should probably mention how irredeemable Leo's character seems to be at this point. He was such a pain to write in this update ;)

The stagnant air on the bus causes Sergio's throat to tighten. A shaking hand grips the steering wheel, and he turns the key in the ignition. The roar of the engine fills his ears, such a stark contrast to the never-ending silence his days usually bring. The muscles in his legs twitch as he reaches for the pedals, his body like a lead weight, as though it's too heavy and too reluctant to carry out the task ahead of him.

He stares at the pale blue sky, squinting as the sun burns his eyes. It might as well be pitch black as far as he's concerned. It isn't his usual nature to feel this down, but his already grim mood darkens as soon as they're out on the road, driving towards what used to be the gang's hideout.

Sometimes, back on the ranch, Sergio would drive some of the tractors and machinery. He certainly isn't used to driving anything as big as a bus. Still, it doesn't matter, he supposes. It's not as though the normal rules of the road apply anymore. They're barely five minutes away from Masche's house before he has to swerve the vehicle to avoid a group of zombies hunched over something – he doesn't want to know what it is exactly – but he knows they're devouring it, tearing it to shreds bit by bit.

Bile rises up in his throat. Everywhere he looks he's met with death and destruction. It is simply unescapable. The road is full of potholes, and places where the tarmac has worn away over the summer. He can't avoid all of them, because the bus is far too wide.

Briefly, he wonders what has become of his ranch back in Sevilla. Most days, he makes a conscious effort _not_ to think about it. His eyes fill with tears and his vision blurs.

"Sergio, watch out!" Gareth yells.

Sergio shakes himself, violently wrenching at the steering wheel to avoid a car wreck that's mere metres in front of them.

"Shit!" Beads of sweat coat Sergio's forehead. The entire vehicle jolts to the right. For a second, Sergio's heart is in his mouth. But he avoids the collision, and miraculously, it's nothing more than a near miss.

"Would you like me to drive?" Gareth's voice is gentle, but he stresses every word of the question.

"No." Sergio shakes his head. "Why would I?"

"It's just that a few of the lads are a bit worried." Gareth rubs his chin. "You're driving a bit… erratically."

"Erratically?" Sergio's nostrils flare. "Gareth, have you seen the state of the roads?" He gestures ahead of him, towards the leaves and debris that coat the abandoned highway. "I can't help the fact there are car wrecks and trash everywhere."

"Ah." Gareth nods. "I see what you mean. But still. You don't seem like yourself today."

Sergio purposely doesn't answer.

"Well, if you need anything…" Gareth pats him on the shoulder and Sergio tenses immediately. "I know this can't be an easy trip for you."

His hands grip onto the steering wheel even more tightly, until his knuckles are white, and Sergio stares resolutely ahead. He is briefly aware of the soft patter of noise that indicates Gareth leaving to sit with the others again.

_This can't be an easy trip for you_.

Gareth has _no_ idea.

In Sergio's mind, the future has never seemed bleaker. He can't see a way out of the group's impossible situation. And now he feels like a condemned man, driving to a place he never wanted to see again. Geri was right, it was silly of him to agree to do this.

He wishes he'd never been kidnapped. He wishes they'd never left the cabin, that he was still trying to force down those horrendous hand-picked mushrooms Geri insisted on cooking every day. He'd trade anything to be there again, when life was tough, but made more sense.

He doesn't even _want_ to go to the islands, yet he is the key to the group getting there.  
  
  
  
The journey passes more quickly than he'd like. Soon enough, he's slowing the bus down to a stop, as they arrive at what used to be the roadblock separating the gang's hideout from the rest of the world.

It isn't much of a roadblock now, with its metal fence collapsed into a flattened mess.

"Well, that's not how we left it," Masche says, walking towards the front the bus.

"What do you think happened?" Rafa asks. "Could there still be… people in there?"

"I doubt there's much of anything at all left here." Sergio takes a deep breath.

"How do you mean?" Neymar stares, mouth slightly ajar.

"The place was overrun with zombies," Sergio says. "Once they got in there, they would have turned any remaining humans because that's what they're programmed to do."

"So, we're supposed to be coping with hundreds of zombies ourselves?" Rafa swallows hard. "How, exactly?"

"They won't be there anymore." Sergio sighs. "Just like I said."

"You seem pretty sure of yourself," Neymar says.

"That's because I am." Sergio stands up, getting ready to leave the bus. "Jesus, why won't any of you listen to me? Think about it – when they got in there they had a feeding frenzy. Once they killed or turned everybody, there'd be nothing left for them to do. I don't know how long it takes for zombies to starve, but their instinct is to hunt when they're hungry. Trust me, they'll be gone by now."

"Fine, I didn't ask for a lecture." Neymar scowls.

"I can't believe they managed to break through a metal fucking fence." Rafa winces, staring at the wreckage directly in front of them.

"There were a lot of infected," Masche says, hands on his hips. "And besides, Leo made a hole in the fence so we could go in and get Sergio out, remember?"

Sergio remembers only too well. If only he could _get rid_ of the memory.

"Can we get a move on?" Sergio glares at Masche.

"Fine, fine, whatever." Masche glares back at him with equal venom.  
  
  
  
"Sergio, do you know where we're going?" Marcelo's voice is barely above a whisper.

He turns around to be met with the concerned faces of the entire group. Gareth is closest to him, with Neymar and Rafa directly behind. Marcelo and James are sticking together, and Sergio finds that much forgivable – after all, they've never been out on one of these supply runs before. The reality of the situation must be a shock to them. Leo is flanked by Luis and Masche, sandwiched between them as though they're his personal bodyguards. Anger courses through Sergio's veins at the sight of it. Precious Leo. It's _his_ fault they're out here, since he's the one who's so insistent they travel to the islands to find stupid Kun.

"Sergio?" Marcelo repeats the question, eyes frozen with terror.

"Yes, I know where we're going," Sergio replies with a huff. "The warehouse over there." He points towards a building in the distance. "That's where the boat is, on the back of a truck. We go in, we get it, we grab anything else we might need, then we get the hell out of here. Because I never want to see this place again."

"You're very touchy today," Leo says. "All of this is for your benefit as well; don't you realise that?"

"Not all of us want to go to the islands." Sergio doesn't look him in the eye.

"Rafa, Neymar and Gareth aren't going," Leo replies. "Yet here they are, willing to help the rest of the group. I respect that."

"But you don't respect me?" Sergio laughs darkly.

"You've not done anything to earn my respect," Leo says.

"Stop it, the pair of you!" It's Gareth who makes the interjection. "What would Geri think of you both, arguing like this?"

"I know Geri better than Sergio does." Leo's lips curl into a smile. "I know what he's capable of."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sergio's stomach clenches at the strange comment.

"Wouldn't you love to know." Leo smirks.

Sergio charges towards Leo, but Masche and Luis step in front of him. His bodyguards at the ready as always.

"Let's just get the boat, before you do something you'll regret." Masche folds his arms, and it's clear neither he nor Luis are going to move away from Leo.

"Fuck you." It takes all of Sergio's strength not to shake, as adrenaline courses through his veins. He won't forget this. He won't _ever_ forget this.  
  
  
  
"It's locked." James tugs at the large padlock and chain on the warehouse door.

"Well done, Captain Obvious." Luis grins at him.

"Gareth, pass me the bolt cutters." Sergio sighs.

Gareth rummages around in his backpack, before producing the necessary tool. "Here you are, Serg."

"Thanks."

He doesn't expect it to be easy, but the bolt cutters effortlessly slide through the lock. Sergio can't help but smirk at how smoothly he's done the job, as though he's proving once again, to everybody, what a good leader he is. But he doesn't get much chance to relish in his victory because Leo pushes past him and starts sliding open the door.

"Leo, stop!" Neymar grabs him. "Caution, remember? We don't know what might be in there."

Sergio almost tells him to let Leo go ahead and charge in there, yet somehow, he fights the urge and manages to resist.

"Fine." Leo dismisses Neymar with a hand, while the others each raise their weapons.

"On my count, okay?" Sergio looks around at the rest of the group. "One. Two. _Three_."

With a push, the door gives way.

Cautiously, the group make their way inside. The building is pitch black, shrouded in darkness. Even the harsh rays from the midday sun do little to illuminate it.

"Somebody switch on a torch!" Marcelo complains.

"I've got one," Rafa says, and soon he's shining it around the warehouse.

"Okay, so you're just making me dizzy." Neymar puts his hands over his eyes.

"For God's sake, everybody else who has a torch, _use them_ ," Masche says.

Sergio reaches into his backpack, grabbing his torch. He switches it on, and it's beam instantly picks out the heavy truck that's being held here. On top of it lies the boat, untouched, its paintwork shiny and new as the day it was done. There it is, their apparent key to freedom. Sergio swallows hard.

"Look at her." Leo stands against the truck, arching his neck up. "Isn't she glorious?"

"It's really…  nothing special." James bites on his lower lip. "Not a patch on the yachts Mendes used to get for us to vacation on."

"Well, beggars can't be choosers." Luis gives a twisted smile.

"If it gets us to safety, then that's all I care about," Masche says. "Does the truck start?"

James pulls open the door, and his lips curl into a smirk. "The keys are still in it."

"Try it then!" Leo folds his arms. "Don't keep us in suspense."

James shrugs and pulls himself up into the driver's seat. At first when he turns the key, the vehicle gives an awkward chug.

"Do it again." Luis walks over towards him.

James does he's told. On the second attempt, the engine roars into power.

Leo and Masche give him a round of applause.

"Don't get too excited, I haven't a clue how to drive this thing," James says.

"I'll do it." Masche grins. "How hard can it be?"

Sergio scoffs under his breath.

"Leo, Luis, are you coming back with me?" Masche settles himself into the driver's seat.

"Oh, so the three of you are just going to abandon the rest of us?" Sergio purses his lips together.

Leo is inches away from the passenger door. He freezes on the spot, staring at Sergio. "Masche, take Marcelo and James with you instead. Luis and I will stay here, and help with the rest of the supply run."

"No way," Masche replies.

"Yes. I insist." Leo steps away from the truck, eyes still fixed on Sergio.

"It'll be fine, I'll look after him." Luis stands by Leo's side, resting a hand on his shoulder.

"Just get the truck out of here," Leo says. "Get it to safety, we need to be able to leave as soon as we can."

Sergio watches as James and Marcelo get into the truck beside Masche. The sound of the engine vibrates around the warehouse. Gareth and Neymar open the garage door, and slowly, the vehicle begins to pull away.

"Bloody hell, it's noisy." Gareth covers his ears.

"It's too noisy." Rafa sighs. "I bet it can be heard for miles. It's like we're advertising ourselves to the zombies… and whatever else is out there."

"Don't say that." Neymar winces.

"Then let's get a move on," Leo says.

"Look around, grab hold of anything else you want us to take." Sergio shines the torch around.

"There are some boxes over here." Neymar gestures to the far corner. "This was their food supply, by the looks of it."

"Perfect," Gareth says, rubbing his hands together.

Sergio's heart sinks. He knows he should be feeling relieved that there are more supplies, but to him, the group are no better than common thieves. Granted, they're stealing from the dead, but it's stealing all the same. If they didn't need the food so much, then he wouldn't eat it on principle.

He can't stay and watch them celebrate this victory.

"Guys, I'm going to go and look around the back," Sergio says.

"I'll come with you." Gareth nods.

"No, I'll be fine. Let me go alone, there's no one else here but us." He deliberately forces as much conviction into his voice as he can.

"Right." Gareth stares down at the floor. "When did you ever do what the rest of us asked you to do, anyway?"

Sergio is already walking away.  
  
  
  
Towards the back of the warehouse, Sergio finds a small room. It's an office of sorts, he supposes. In the distance he can still hear the murmur of everyone else's voices. Their mundane chatter is oddly comforting because it means that ultimately, they're safe, yet he's incredibly grateful for some time away from them. And Gareth is acting like _Sergio's_ the one in danger.

He moves the torch around. There's a top of the range PC – yeah, like that's useful to anybody nowadays. He sees tons of papers and account books. Somebody worked hard here, way back in the day. Sergio huffs as he rummages through the contents on the desk. His initial search hasn't uncovered anything of value.

Next, he lays his eyes upon a filing cabinet. Sergio pulls the top drawer open and instantly smirks. There's a boxed radio, and several walkie-talkies. Luka is going to be ecstatic. He reads the text 'long-range – 50-mile radius' and his heart races. They have a legitimate method of communication now, and it could prove to be indispensable. He routes around the rest of the drawer, retrieving several spare batteries. They're sure to come in useful.

"Are you done in here?"

Leo's sudden appearance causes Sergio to jump with a jolt.

"Jesus Christ, you scared the crap out of me," Sergio says.

"You should be more careful," Leo replies. "I could have been one of the infected."

"Don't be an idiot." Sergio shakes his head, putting the treasures he's found his backpack one by one.

"So, what did you find?"

"Never you mind." Sergio grips onto his backpack a little more tightly.

"Whatever." Leo starts rooting through the things on the desk. "I don't even care."

"I've already looked there." Sergio folds his arms. "There's nothing useful."

"Fine." Leo moves on, going further towards the back of the warehouse. Sergio has no choice but to follow him.

"Maybe we should go back," Sergio says.

"I'll just check up here first." Leo continues walking.

"I'm surprised Luis isn't here." Sergio makes the remark casually.

"We aren't joined at the hip." Leo's voice is laced with sarcasm. "Besides, he's busy taking _your_ food back to the bus."

"It's not just my food, it's everybody's food." Sergio raises his voice. "Got under your skin, have I?"

"Not nearly as much as I've got under yours," Leo replies.

Sergio clenches his hand around his weapon, and it's taking all his strength not to use it.

"There's another storeroom at the back here." Leo shines his torch on a door.

"Fine, let's look inside." Reluctantly, Sergio walks towards him. "Then, we'll need to get back to the others for real."

Leo tugs and pulls at the door, but it doesn't give way.

"Need some help, little man?"

"Fuck off."

As Leo barks the insult at him, the door doesn't come open, rather, it gives way.

It isn't a storeroom at all, it's an exit that leads out onto a yard, situated well away from the highway.

A yard filled with hundreds of zombies. Maybe even thousands. More of them than Sergio's ever seen in his life.

"Let's get back into the warehouse!" It takes all of Sergio's strength to keep the fear from his voice.

Leo turns to him, red-faced and his mouth open in horror.

It all happens very quickly after that. First of all, the door won't close after them, instead it gives way completely, its hinges breaking as it crashes to the ground. Within seconds, the first horde of zombies is upon the two of them.

Sergio has no choice but to start shooting wildly. Zombie entrails and guts fly everywhere, blinding him as they coat his face, all sticky and acrid smelling.

He might not be able to see anything, but he can certainly hear. And the bloodcurdling scream that comes deep from Leo's lungs is one sound he knows he'll never forget.


	20. No Más (No More)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things come to a very dramatic climax as the group is finally torn apart.
> 
> Only two more chapters to go after this... the end is nearly here! Everyone's losing their minds at this point, me included.

Sergio can see nothing but fine droplets of blood, coating the air like smoke. There are the shadows of the undead which move around him, seemingly getting ever closer. He’s been perilously near to death before, yet never quite like this.

When Leo screams again, Sergio’s concern turns to disdain.

Leo isn’t dead. In fact, Leo isn’t even in danger.

Sergio realises this because his scream comes from above him. Leo has already escaped, traumatised by the sight of Sergio being surrounded by zombies. It’s as though he’s decided to look out for number one and abandon him, to leave him to get massacred. Sergio’s blood boils.

“Leo, do something!”

He won’t resort to saying help me, I need you, even though he evidently does. Instead he continues shooting at everything that moves, stomping on floored zombies, and fighting for his life.

The gun runs out of bullets. Sergio gulps. He pulls the trigger again and again, it’s no use. There is nothing.

“Leo, sometime today would be great!”

Sergio feels himself being hoisted up, Leo’s arms pulling him from underneath his shoulders.

“You’re heavy!” Leo complains, breathing heavily.

“And you’re weak.”

“Don’t forget who’s rescuing you.”

The two of them cling to a ladder on the side of the warehouse. Leo continues climbing until he gets to the roof. Sergio follows. Both men sit together, trying to regulate their breathing.

“What a fucking mess,” Sergio says.

“A mess entirely of your own making.”

“I was trying to find the things Luka asked me for.”

“And you almost got us both killed in the process. What were you thinking?”

Sergio glares at him, face reddening. “You hesitated,” he says.

“Excuse me?”

“Back there, I called to you, and you hesitated. You didn’t lift me up right away.”

Leo swallows hard. “I saved your life. Have some gratitude.”

“You might have saved my life, but you didn’t want to. Admit that much at least.”

“I did it for Geri.”

They stare at one another. Sergio is amazed. _I did it for Geri_. What a repulsive response.

“You hate Geri being with me, don’t you? Tell me Leo, why all the jealousy?”

“I’m not jealous of you.”

“Yes, you are. It’s written all over your face.”

“Bullshit.”

“Is it because you can’t stand to see anyone else happy? You just want us all to be miserable, like you are over Kun.”

“Shut up.”

“Because you’re never going to find him again…”

“I said shut up!” Leo clenches his fists.

“Go on, punch me.” Sergio starts to smirk. “I dare you to try.”

Leo waits, tilting his head towards Sergio, a smirk of his own spreading across his face. “No matter how much you continue to tell yourself what you have with Geri is true love, it isn’t.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“He’ll always be loyal to me. He proved that, just a few weeks ago.”

Sergio swallows hard. He doesn’t want to get involved in Leo’s game, but deep down, he knows something is amiss. What has Geri been keeping from him?

“Got nothing to say for yourself?” Leo asks.

Sergio ignores him.

“Leo! Sergio!” It is Luis who is shouting from the other side of the building. “Where the hell are you both?”

“Stay where you are!” Leo gets to his feet, and begins to carefully cross the roof. “There are hundreds of zombies out here. We’re going to have to come across to you.”

Underneath them, the herd goes into a frenzy.

“What were you doing?” Luis asks.

“Ask Sergio.” Leo glares at him with dark eyes.

“You’re idiots,” Luis says. “Both of you.”

Sergio finds he doesn’t have the energy to argue.  
  
  
  
He was a footballer back in the old days, not an acrobat, and Sergio finds it painfully difficult to walk across the shiny metal roof towards the front of the warehouse, towards safety. His steps are light and nimble, because he expects the surface beneath him to give way at any moment. That really _would_ be disastrous. To add insult to injury, Leo doesn’t seem to struggle at all. Is there anything he isn’t good at?

The gang waits for them at the other end, a mixture of concern and bemusement spread across their faces.

“I can’t believe you just walked off, what were you thinking?” Gareth asks, arms folded.

“They weren’t thinking,” Luis says. “That much is obvious.”

“Like I said, it was Sergio’s fault.” Leo huffs as Luis waits for him at the bottom of the pipe he’s forced to climb down. “He went off looking for things – things we don’t need for our trip to the islands, might I add.”

Everyone looks at Sergio. It’s as though he can feel their eyes burning a hole into him.

“I hate to say it man, but you really aren’t the best at decision-making,” Neymar says, holding his arms out as Sergio slides down the pipe. He quickly retracts his offer of help once he sees the amount of blood and guts on Sergio’s body. “Oh. Gross.”

Sergio shakes his head and walks away. The sooner he gets back home, the better.  
  
  
He says nothing on the journey back. He is silent, brooding, plotting his next move. There are too many thoughts in his head, crowding him, making him feel dazed.

As the vehicle comes to a stop outside Masche’s house, Sergio readies himself.

He pounces on Leo, pushing him onto the grass verge at the front of the property, wrapping his hands around his throat. It takes all his restraint not to punch him. He wants answers, and Leo can’t give them to him if he’s unconscious.

This confrontation has been a long time in the making.

“Sergio, what the hell are you doing?” It’s Geri’s voice he hears through the chaos that follows.

Masche and Luis are onto him, pulling him off Leo, shouting and screaming.

“I’m going to kill him,” Luis says.

“No, you aren’t!” Luka stomps onto the scene, his face creased with more anger than Sergio’s ever seen. “Stop this, all of you. We have to stick together.”

“It’s too late for that.” Leo spits.

“Will someone tell me what the hell happened out there?” Geri looks from person to person.

When no one speaks, Luis steps up. “We got the vehicle with the boat on without any trouble,” he says. “Masche, James and Marcelo were delegated the task of bringing it back. The rest of us looked for supplies, but Sergio and Leo broke away from the group. The back of the building was overrun. They had to climb across the roof to avoid the zombies.”

“Sergio was the one who went off on his own,” Leo says. “I followed him, and it’s a good job I did, because I had to save his life.”

Geri turns to Sergio. “Is this true?”

“I was getting the stuff Luka asked for.” He clears his throat, deliberately avoiding the question.

“You got a radio?” Luka asks, eyes widening.

“Walkie-talkies, too.” Sergio grins.

“Sergio, this is amazing.” Luka’s face lights up. “This could make all the difference to us.”

“It doesn’t change a single thing.” Leo shakes his head. “We’re leaving for the islands, tomorrow, if we can.”

Luka frowns. “I wish you’d have some faith in me. I can get us out of this, without us taking stupid risks.”

“The decision’s been made.” Leo folds his arms.

“At least let me take a look at the boat first,” Luka says. “I want to make sure it’s safe, see if there’s anything I can do to help you.”

“I actually think that’s a good idea.” Masche turns to Leo.

“Whatever.” Leo turns, as though he’s going to go into the house.

“I’m not done with you yet,” Sergio says. “I want to know what you meant, up on the roof back at the warehouse. When you said Geri would always be loyal to you.”

Geri freezes, eyes going wide with panic. “Leo, don’t do this.”

Everyone else is looking at them.

“It was me,” Leo says, licking his lips. “Back at the cabin, when we got overrun. It was because of me. I sabotaged the fence.”

Sergio’s blood runs cold. He turns to Geri, only to see him turn away from him. Leo has the audacity to laugh.

“You piece of shit,” Gareth growls, storming towards him. “You could have killed all of us, Leo. We were safe there!”

“I’m so disappointed in you.” Neymar’s voice is barely audible. “I’m so disappointed in you.”

“It worked out for the best. We found everyone else, didn’t we? And once we get to the islands, we’ll find even more people,” Leo says.

But nobody is convinced.

The sting of betrayal hurts Sergio like an open wound. It’s as though all his internal organs are shaking, and his heart is about to give out on him.

“We’re done,” he whispers to Geri. “You and I, whatever we had, it’s gone. We’re done.”

“Sergio, no…”

He hears Geri’s pathetic plea, but he’s already walking away.  
  
  
  
As night unfurls like a ghostly cloak over the house, Sergio busies himself, gathering his possessions. It’s not like he has much to call his own these days. His old cell phone, his watch – the battery long since dead, and his clothes, mostly stained and worn to shreds now. He cannot grasp the depth of how much he has fallen, he is but a shadow of who he used to be.

All Sergio knows is he will not spend another night in this room, in the bed he and Geri shared, where they nursed each other through the flu, and held onto each other, seeking comfort from the apocalypse.

“Sergio, what are you doing?” Geri appears from behind the door.

“I’m not staying in here with you.”

“I know you’re mad with me –“

“That’s the understatement of the century.”

“You have every right to be.”

“Yes, yes I do.”

“But we can’t break up.”

Sergio stares at Geri, open-mouthed. “I think you’ll find we can.”

“P-please,” Geri stutters, lifting a hand to Sergio’s shoulder. He quickly pushes it away. “Sergio, look at what life has become! These aren’t normal circumstances. We can’t throw away what we’ve got. Some days, being with you is the only thing that gets me through this mess.”

“Maybe you should have thought about that before lying to me.” Sergio’s brown eyes fill with tears.

“I didn’t lie to you.”

“Lying by omission is still lying.”

“I thought it was for the best – you got kidnapped, you were a mess, I didn’t think you needed to know about what Leo had done.”

“Those reasons are precisely why you should have told me.” He raises his voice. “Do you know how many nights I spent, wondering what the hell I’d done wrong? Wondering how those things had got into the cabin?”

“Sergio, I’m sorry…”

“I thought it was me. I thought I’d missed something, that I was the one who’d put us all in danger. You _let me_ think that.”

“I was wrong, I know that now.”

“It’s too late for apologies.”

“No, it isn’t. We can sort this out.”

Sergio feels a stab of pain in his chest as he turns to look at Geri. He’s convinced he loves him, but sometimes, love just isn’t enough.

Everything they’ve been through, as rivals, as lovers, and it all boils down to this.

“I’m not who people think I am,” Sergio says. “I wear my heart on my sleeve, but I’m not dumb, I’m not a thug, I have feelings, Geri. You exploited them.”

Geri says nothing, but Sergio can see his bottom lip quivering.

“I want you to go to the islands.” Sergio emphasises each word. “I want you to be safe, I want you to survive. But when you embark on your journey tomorrow, you’ll be doing it without me.”

“Sergio, you _have_ to come with me.”

“No.” He shakes his head.

“I’m not leaving you, not when it’s so dangerous out there.” Geri grabs him around the waist, pulling him close. Sergio pushes him away again.

“My decision’s been made.” He swings his backpack over his shoulder. “There’s one thing you should know though.”

“What?” Geri’s voice is barely a croak.

“You shouldn’t trust Leo,” Sergio says. “He almost let me die out there today. He said as much himself.”

The look on Geri’s face is unreadable.

Sergio walks out of the room, resolutely. The couch will be perfectly adequate for him tonight.


	21. El Teléfono (The Telephone)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second to last chapter, and this one is... upsetting. You've been warned :(

Geri volunteers to take the night watch. It seems like the right thing to do, since sleep is out of the question. Oh, how he wishes that wasn’t the case, because sleeping would be so much easier than being awake. In his dreams, at least, maybe he and Sergio would still be together.

The hordes seem to be growing in numbers, he thinks to himself. Tonight, the street is filled with ravenous zombies, clawing at anything and everything in sight, including the fence which protects the property. It won’t hold indefinitely, that much is clear. Even if they wanted to stay here, Geri knows the group will eventually have to move on. Nowhere stays safe forever.

As the light of dawn begins to creep in, the crowds of the undead become more vivid in their horror. Not even sunlight deters their hunger anymore.

“Are you okay?” Neymar’s voice makes him jump, Geri’s face softens as he sees his friend.

“No.” He shakes his head. “But I’m going to have to be.”

“Give Sergio time,” Neymar says. “Perhaps he’ll start to understand why you kept quiet about Leo.”

“Do you understand?”

Neymar nods. “I was mad at first. Really mad. But then I thought about how I was in the beginning, when I was scared, and you looked after me. You did what you did because you were trying to look after him.”

Geri feels a lump in his throat.

“All you’ve ever done is try to look after everybody, Geri. You’re a good man.”

“I still lied.” He doesn’t want to be praised. He doesn’t deserve it.

“Is lying bad if it’s done to keep everybody safe?”

“I don’t know, Ney. I really don’t know.”

Neymar pulls him into a hug, and they stay like that for a little while. Eventually, Geri hands him the gun and the binoculars.

“Go and get some rest,” Neymar says.

“Of course.” But Geri isn’t going to rest. He isn’t even going to have any breakfast.  
  
  
  
He surprised at how quiet it is, surprised that everyone is going about their business normally, as though today isn’t the day they’ll go their separate ways once and for all. Geri can barely breathe when he thinks about leaving Sergio.

In the kitchen, Masche is heating beans and rice. Leo and Luis are leaning on the counter talking to him, and no one looks up as Geri walks through the room. As his eyes land on the living room couch with Sergio curled up on it, he freezes, before walking away. He can’t bear to see him like this. Part of him wants to go back, to plead with him to reconsider his decision to stay behind, to beg him for forgiveness. But he knows when Sergio gets an idea in his head he sticks to it, and now isn’t the time to try and persuade him into thinking differently.

They don’t _have_ the gift of time. Therein lies the problem.

Luka knocks into him as he hurriedly tries to get past him, carrying a large box of tools.

“We don’t have enough time we don’t have enough time,” Luka says, eyes wide with terror. “I finally get everything I need to get us out of this and half of you are going to leave!”

“Calm down, Luka.” Geri pats him on the shoulder, sighing deeply. “What can I do to help?”

They go outside together.

“You know I could probably contact rescue services over the radio Sergio found, don’t you?”

“Do you still think there are any rescue services?”

“Yes. Somewhere. They’ll be safe communities, just like the one we’ve heard about on the islands. But I haven’t got time to go through all the numbers because Leo wants to leave.”

“We could ask him for a few more days.”

“I already tried, Geri.”

“This is ridiculous – I don’t even want to go anymore. Not now Sergio… he won’t come with me.” His stomach twists.

But Luka isn’t listening to the latest drama about their love lives, because he’s already climbing up and onto the boat. Geri follows him, watching as he opens the door to the driver’s cabin.

“Holy shit!” Luka turns to him. “I knew it, I just knew it.” He points to a phone which is attached to the wall. “All the tinkering I’ve been doing, and this was just sitting here, waiting for me to find it.”

“The phone lines are down, Luka.”

“This is a satellite phone, Geri!”

“A satellite phone?” Geri’s mouth opens in realisation. “So, it’ll still work?”

“The infected would have to be pretty fucking clever to knock out satellites, wouldn’t they?” A smirk spreads across his face.

Adrenaline rushes through Geri’s body. “What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to get us rescued. Nobody, and I mean nobody is making a dodgy trip to an uncertain location only to find nothing. I won’t let Leo risks your lives. I promised I’d get us out of this, and I will.”

“What can I do to help?” Geri asks, buzzing with an anticipation he hasn’t felt in a long time.

“Take a look around, there’ll be a book somewhere around here,” Luka says. “It’ll contain emergency numbers. I’m going to try all the ones located in the Balearic Islands first.”

Geri stares at him, and his heart pounds against his rib cage.

Hope. There is still hope, despite everything.  
  
  
Sergio isn’t angry anymore, he’s just hurt. Maybe he’s mad at himself, because he didn’t see any of this coming.

He thought Geri and he had it made.

Several suitcases are lined up in the hallway, and Sergio swallows hard. Seeing them makes the enormity of the situation vividly real.

“Are you sure you won’t come with us?” Cristiano asks, as he places another bag of belongings alongside the rest of them.

“I didn’t want to go in the first place,” he says. “I was only doing it for Geri. And now, well… I guess I don’t need to.”

“If Gareth, James and I can make it work, then you can forgive Geri.” He stares at him with the brownest eyes.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that Gareth has changed his mind. He’s coming with us. With James and me. The three of us are going to try to be together.”

Sergio stares at him, open-mouthed. “Well, why sleep with one person when you can have two?”

Cristiano laughs darkly. “Think about what I said. Life is precious. You know what it’s like out there. If you can’t swallow your pride, then you might never get to see Geri again.”

Sergio says nothing, trying to digest the words, to live with the enormity of what Cristiano is saying. He starts to murmur a reply when he hears a thudding noise coming from outside.

“What’s that?” Sergio asks, looking over at the window.

Cristiano stands behind him, looking over his shoulders. “I think it’s just Geri and Luka. They’re doing something to the boat.”

“Of course they are.” Sergio sighs.  
  
  
  
Luka dials more numbers than Geri can remember. He gets nothing, sometimes just static, and one time a message saying the number has been disconnected.

“This is hopeless,” Geri says.”

“No! We are _not_ giving up.”

“Wait…” Geri runs his finger along yet another page of the information book. “Try this one. It’s the contact for the Balearic sea rescue.”

Luka’s eyes glow with passion. “This is the one, Geri. I know it. This is the one.”

“It has to be.” Geri thinks out loud.

It rings three or four times, then gets picked up. A male voice offers a greeting.

“Hello, what’s your emergency?”

Geri stares at Luka, astounded, barely taking in what he’s saying as he gives the group’s location.

“They’re coming,” Luka says, as he puts the phone down. “The military have a community on Ibiza, they’ve been rescuing people, and now they’re coming to get us.”

They hug each other, and Geri feels no embarrassment about letting the tears flow.

  
  
Sergio hears the noise again. It’s almost constant, a metallic scraping that grates on his nerves and makes him feel as though his ears might bleed. It simply _can’t_ be coming from the boat.

“Something is wrong, Cris,” he says.

Cristiano doesn’t get chance to reply, because Neymar and Rafa are running down the stairs, screaming.

“They’re bringing down the fence!” Neymar yells. “There’s too many of them, there’s no way we can stop them.”

“Leo, you didn’t put a hole in it did you?” Sergio knows he’ll live to regret making such a snide statement. It’s a low blow. He only has to look at Leo’s red face to see how scared he is.

“Geri is out there with Luka,” Cristiano says, eyes wide with terror.

Instinctively, Sergio grabs his gun and steps out into the yard.

“You need to get back into the house!” He yells towards the boat. “We’re being overrun.”

He takes out one zombie, then the next and the next. Gareth is behind him, trying to help him keep the numbers down.

“We can’t leave the boat. I have to stay by the phone!” Luka gesticulates. “I got through to a number on the Balearics. They’re coming to us, by helicopter.”

Sergio can’t make sense of the words above the sound of gunfire.

“What did you say?” Gareth stares at Luka.

“We’re being saved, you idiots! Don’t you understand?” Geri’s eyes are full of tears.

Sergio almost gets tripped up by a particular zombie, before smashing its head with his foot. “How do you know this is legit?”

“It’s definitely legit,” Geri shouts back. “There’s a satellite phone on here.”

More zombies push through the shattered fence, heading towards the vehicle with the boat on.

“Quick, this is your only chance!” Sergio looks at Geri pleadingly. “You and Luka have to get back in the house. We can communicate with the rescuers from the balcony, with the radio.”

Luka and Geri exchange looks between each other, and then glance towards the growing hordes of zombies.

“He’s right,” Gareth says. “You won’t make it out here.”

“They’ll be here in an hour or two, tops.” Luka shakes his head. But the numbers continue to grow.

“We can clear your path if you come with us now.” Sergio looks at Geri pleadingly.

He can’t even begin to digest the news that they’re going to be saved, that nobody has to leave to make the uncertain trip to the islands. He can’t relish in it, can’t take happiness from it, because if he doesn’t get Gareth and Luka inside, and the doors and windows closed, then there isn’t going to _be_ anyone to rescue.

“Alright, but we’re waiting on the balcony.” Geri sighs. “We can’t miss this.”

“They’ll find us,” Sergio says.

He watches as Luka flings the cabin door open, Geri covering him from behind with his gun. Gareth shoots several zombies, and Sergio beckons with his hand.

“This is safe as it’s going to get,” Luka whispers.

As they run towards Sergio and Gareth, time seems to slow down to a crawl. They are mere metres away from the kitchen door, and from safety.

Sergio holds his hand out, and Geri takes it. Just touching him sends an electric current throughout his body.

They will work things out, they _have to_ work things out. Everything will be different once they’re rescued, and they can work on their relationship properly.

Sergio feels something tug at his other hand.

“Sergio!” Geri shouts, not letting him go.

A stray zombie pulls at Sergio, and for a moment it seems impossibly strong. Geri shoots it square in the head.

“I’m not losing you now.” Geri smiles right at him.

From the corner of his eye, Sergio sees Gareth and Luka make it into the house. “Come on, let’s go.”

A group of the undead are upon them, and Sergio starts shooting as they back up towards the door. One of them is floored, but not killed. And Geri doesn’t know how it gets to him, but somehow it does. Maybe his adrenaline took over, maybe he just wasn’t paying enough attention.

It sinks its teeth into his ankle.

Sergio makes a noise unlike anything Geri’s ever heard before, and drags him away into the house. Geri is vaguely aware of the door closing behind him, of the others celebrating as Luka tells them about the impending rescue.

Blood seeps through his sock, dark and thick. And it hurts unlike any pain he’s ever felt before.

“Sergio…” he whispers his name, shaking with fear.

He musters the strength to take his shoe off, followed by the sock. He can see the bite marks, his skin already red and angry, and the blood oozing out more and more ferociously.

The room falls silent, everyone staring at the bite.

Geri knows he’s done for. He’s finished. His journey is over.

  



	22. El Fin (The End)

It wasn’t supposed to be like this. They were all going to get rescued, together. They were meant to survive.

Instead, Geri is here, facing the reality that he’s got a fatal bite on his ankle. There’s no going back from this, notwithstanding a miracle. Time is of the essence now. He will do what he must.

“Sergio, I love you more than anything.” He makes the declaration with a plea, staring up into Sergio’s deep brown eyes.

But Sergio can’t look at him, can’t respond, can barely even take a breath given how ferociously he is sobbing. He collapses on the floor in a heap.

It is Cristiano who takes charge of the situation.

“James,” he says. “Do you have any of those antibiotics left from when you have the flu?”

“Yes.”

“Fetch them. _Now_. And bring water.” It is not a request.

He leans down next to Geri, examining the wound.

“You can’t help me Cris,” Geri says. “I’m beyond help now.”

“Don’t be so silly.” He waves a hand dismissively. “Did you give up on me back in Camp Nou?”

“I didn’t know you’d been bitten.”

“It wouldn’t have changed things, even if you had. I know you, Geri.”

They stare into each other’s eyes for a moment, and Geri’s heart is suddenly full of gratitude.

“Here, you’ll need this.” Luka hands Cristiano a medical kit.

“Thank you.” He offers a small smile.

“Luka, shouldn’t you be on the balcony?” Geri asks.

“I’m going right now. Rafa and Toni are coming with me. We’ll make damn sure our rescuers see us.”

James returns with the pills and a bottle of water. Geri swallows two of them, mainly to placate Cristiano. He finds it hard to believe that penicillin alone can have any bearing on the zombie virus.

“Now, let me get you cleaned up, Geri.”

He didn’t think the pain could get worse, but it does. It’s all he can do not to scream as Cristiano mops up the blood.

“How long?” It’s the first thing Sergio’s said in several minutes. “How long before he turns?”

The room is silent but for Neymar’s sniffling.

“Maybe he won’t, maybe the pills will help.” Leo’s voice is shaky, his eyes filled with tears.

“We’ll know soon,” Masche says. “If he’s lucky, he’ll make it until the rescuers get here. But according to the last news bulletin we ever saw, most people turn quickly.”

Geri doesn’t want to say anything, but he sure he’s hotter than he should be already, like he’s going to burn up. He doesn’t think he’s going to be one of the lucky ones who makes it 24 more hours.

“He’s not a statistic,” Sergio says, wiping his face with his hands. “He’s my… he’s my boyfriend.”

“Sergio, don’t get upset…” Marcelo places a hand on his shoulder, eyes full of concern.

“How the fuck I supposed to feel?” Sergio raises his voice. “He’s going to die!”

“Sergio, please…” Geri chokes back tears. “Come and sit next to me, hold me. I want to be with you while I still can.”

Sergio only responds with a noise, but he drags himself over to where Geri is, sits next to him, and buries his head against his shoulder. Geri presses his lips to his forehead, kissing him gently.

“I’m so sorry about everything… so sorry,” he whispers.

Sergio’s muffled sobs continue to come. Geri grimaces in pain as Cristiano works at cleaning the bite.

“Can’t you talk to him?” Cristiano asks. “Comfort him, Sergio. Tell him you love him. Do something. Anything. Sobbing all over him isn’t going to help him.”

Sergio nods, stroking the side of Geri’s face with his hand.

“What we going to do if he changes?” Luis asks.

“He won’t,” Leo replies, but there is no conviction in his voice.

“What will we do?” Luis continues.

“You end it,” Geri whispers. “I’m not spending eternity as a zombie.”

“You won’t have to do,” Cristiano says. “We’ve done everything we can for now, and soon, our rescuers will be here.”

Geri wishes he could believe it was true.  
  
  
They wait for what feels like forever. Sergio never leaves Geri’s side, in fact, he only moves a couple of times to check his watch.

“I knew it was too good to be true,” Luis says. “Nobody is coming.”

“We can’t give up yet.” Masche’s voice is full of determination. “This has been Luka’s task from the beginning. I believe in him. I believe there are still good people out there. Someone will rescue us.”

Normally, Geri would have welcomed the optimism. But he doesn’t have much to be optimistic about at the moment. His throat is dry, his tongue sticking to the roof of his mouth. He knows he is sweating, getting hotter, moment by moment.

“Can I get some more water?” His voice is but a croak.

Sergio and Cristiano exchange looks.

“He’s hot,” Sergio says.

“I know I am,” Geri whispers. “But both of you need to learn to control yourselves, especially at a time like this.” He manages a wry smile. He will keep on cracking jokes right until the end if things go his way.

Too bad nobody is laughing.

“His skin is burning.” Sergio continues talking to Cristiano. “His fever is getting worse and worse by the minute, holding him is like being next to a radiator.”

“I don’t want you to stop holding me.” Geri peers up at him.

“It’s okay…” Cristiano shushes him, pressing the plastic water bottle against his lips. “Try and drink, sweetheart.”

Geri wants the water. He knows his body _needs_ the water, but as he tries to swallow, his body rejects it. Deep, rattling coughs come from deep within his chest. His heart pounds against his rib cage.

“Try again.” Sergio holds the bottle, and Geri puts his hand around it, tipping it.

It’s no good. As soon as he swallows the water, it comes straight back up his throat. Geri shakes, feeling the deadly virus take hold of him, clamping him down like a vice.

“They’ll be here,” Masche says, rubbing his eyes with his hands. “We’ll save you, Geri. Don’t give up.”

He doesn’t know if they’re trying to comfort themselves or him.

In the end, it isn’t a question of giving up. It’s a question of fighting to stay awake. His vision blurs, lights leaking into the periphery of it that he knows aren’t there. He tries to focus on Sergio, to remember the touch of Sergio’s hand on his, to recall in vivid detail how beautiful his face is.

He hasn’t got the strength to tell him he loves him.

Sergio’s face is the last thing he sees before he finally loses consciousness.

He doesn’t hear the helicopters as they hover over the property. Doesn’t see Luka, Rafa and Toni waving at them, doesn’t hear their triumphant cheers.

There is nothing.  
  
  
  
It’s funny how, after all his years as a footballer, Geri never gets used to waking up in strange places. His head throbs like a bad hangover, and he finds himself wondering if he downed copious amounts of beer and vodka the night before.

But then Sergio’s face comes into focus, and Geri remembers. Their fingers are linked together, and Geri wonders how long they’ve been like that. Sergio’s head is tilted to the side, eyes half closed. He wakes as soon as Geri brushes his thumb over his hand.

“Am I dead?” Geri asks. He has to ask, because his body doesn’t really feel like his own.

“No.” Sergio shakes his head, half smiling. “You almost were. It was far too close for comfort.”

Geri takes a deep breath. “How did we get here? What happened?” He pauses. “Actually, where the hell are we, anyway?”

“Your rescuers came through. We’re on Ibiza, there’s a community here. It’s one of several.”

“So, we’re safe… and I’m not a zombie.”

Sergio laughs, leaning down to kiss him on the forehead. “You’re not. You’re still my Geri, my favourite pain in the ass.”

“Hey now…”

“They gave you blood and stem cells from someone else who was immune. Don’t ask me to explain it. I’m just over the fucking moon that you’re alive.”

“Me too, who else is going to terrorise you?”

They laugh, and Geri pulls Sergio towards him, into the tightest hug he has the strength to give him.

“Where are the others?”

“Getting cleaned up and being examined by the doctor for the most part. None of them seemed to want to turn down the offer of a hot meal, funnily enough. Everyone’s okay. We all got here, Geri, despite everything. We made it.”

“Thanks to Luka.”

“And thanks to _you_. You were the one who got us out of Barcelona the night it all went wrong. You were the one who brought us all to safety in the first place. You and your fucking mushrooms.”

“Between you and I, I don’t think I’m ever going to be able to eat mushrooms again.”

Sergio smirks. “Still, they stopped us from starving. You were instrumental in getting us to this point.”

“We all played our parts.” Geri smiles. “Shit, wait. Do they know about Cristiano being immune?”

Sergio nods. “He told them himself, it was his choice. They think they can save a lot more people in the future with his stem cells.”

Geri grins at Sergio, but it turns into a yawn. He’s just learned so much new information that his head hurts even more, if it’s possible.

“Sleep,” Sergio says, as if he knows what Geri’s thinking. “There’s a lot to take in, and you need to rest. We can talk more about this when you’re feeling better.”

Geri falls asleep easily, because he knows he’ll wake up again, and when he does, Sergio will be there.  
  
  
  
The deep blue waves of the sea gently lap onto the golden beach, and Geri watches, almost hypnotised. The smell of salt fills his nose, the whooshing of the water is like music to his ears. All his senses seem to be more heightened. Life is more beautiful, more vivid than ever. After coming so close to losing everything he feels as though he will never take anything for granted again.

“Do you think it will be different between us?” Leo asks, bringing Geri out of his stupor.

“Yes, but not in a bad way.” He leans back, staring across at his friend. He doesn’t think he’s ever seen him look this nervous before. “You’ve been through something unimaginable and horrid, whereas he’s been holed up in a safe community this entire time.”

Leo’s face drops.

“The things we’ve done, and the things we’ve seen.” Geri sighs. “Maybe we’ll never get over it, but we’ll learn to live again. Look at it like this – you’re going to cherish every moment you have with him from now on. You missed him so very much.”

For a while, they do nothing but sit back and look at the sea.

“I told Sergio I was sorry,” Leo says. “That I acted out of character because I was scared, because I couldn’t cope with the idea of living in a world without the person I love the most.”

“It’s okay.” He holds a hand up dismissively.

“No, it’s not.” Leo shakes his head. “But Sergio was good enough to accept my apology and give me a hug anyway.”

Geri finds himself smiling once more, and looks up to the sky as the helicopter comes into view. Soon, it lands on a helipad, close to the pier that’s beside them.

“Go on, Leo.” Geri gestures towards it. “What are you waiting for?”

Leo nods, and runs across the beach at breakneck speed.

From where Geri is sitting, he can just about make out Leo jumping into Kun’s arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't quite believe it myself, but here we are, the end! I know I chickened out of anything particularly bad happening in this universe, but I loved my characters too much to kill any of them off. I hope the ending wasn't too much of a copout and that you enjoyed it. I am sure that very little of what I've written about is technically possible. Then again, that's the joy of fiction. 
> 
> I wholeheartedly want to thank everybody who has ever read, commented and left kudos on this fic. You don't know what a difference it's made to me over the last year. Writing this has been an absolute joy for me and the support has been unbelievable. I am in love with dystopian fiction as a genre (and I have an unhealthy obsession with the walking dead) so this truly was a blast to put together.
> 
> I'm going to be taking a bit of a break from posting because I'm going into hospital and have a few other major life things going on. But I will be back! Thank you again for all of the love <3

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [A Very Zombie Christmas](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12879477) by [pique](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pique/pseuds/pique)




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